--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I wasn't an academic looking in books for…" description: "\"I wasn't an academic looking in books for ideas. But I educated myself about historical work that was similar to mine, to provide a frame of reference ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ecc/michael-heizer-27170_about_i-wasn-t-an-academic-looking-in-books-fo_2521520.jpg" --- # I wasn't an academic looking in books for ideas. But I… ![“I wasn't an academic looking in books for ideas. But I educated myself about historical work that was similar to mine, to provide a frame of reference that wasn't the usual frame of reference of the New York art world and Europe.” quote by Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ecc/michael-heizer-27170_about_i-wasn-t-an-academic-looking-in-books-fo_2521520.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ecc/michael-heizer-27170_about_i-wasn-t-an-academic-looking-in-books-fo_2521520.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ecc/michael-heizer-27170_about_i-wasn-t-an-academic-looking-in-books-fo_2521520.jpg) > “I wasn't an academic looking in books for ideas. But I educated myself about historical work that was similar to mine, to provide a frame of reference that wasn't the usual frame of reference of the New York art world and Europe.” [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. An artist can forge a unique perspective by studying historical precedents outside mainstream circles, creating a distinct creative framework. **In simple terms:** He studied obscure history to shape his art. Key Takeaway Seek unconventional influences for originality. Themes art history innovation research Mood analytical inspirational Type theoretical creative When to use this quote - studio practice - curatorial planning - academic research Key Concepts artistic methodology cultural context interdisciplinary study Questions to Reflect On - What hidden histories could inspire your work? - How do you balance tradition with innovation? A Different Perspective Unconventional sources may be hard to access. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [About](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about/) [Academic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/academic/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-world/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Educated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/educated/) [Educated Historical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/educated-historical-1254848/) [Europe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/europe/) [Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frame/) [Historical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/historical/) [Historical Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/historical-work-1254850/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Ideas Educated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas-educated-1254849/) [Looking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looking/) [Mine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mine/) [Myself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myself/) [New](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new/) [New york](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york/) [Provide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/provide/) [Reference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reference/) [Reference Wasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reference-wasn-1254852/) [Similar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/similar/) [Usual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/usual/) [Wasn Academic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wasn-academic-1254851/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [York](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/york/) ## Related quotes > [I love being educated by historical novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-stephenson/i-love-being-educated-by-historical-novels/) [Debra Stephenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-stephenson/) > [“Is that a scanning electron microscope? “This’ll do, pig, this’ll do,” I murmur. “Excuse me?” “Sorry. Film reference, wasn’t meant as an insult.” “Ah.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-d-barant/is-that-a-scanning-electron-microscope-this-ll-do-pig-this-ll-do-i/) [D.D. Barant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-d-barant/) > [There is no connection between the political ideas of our educated class and the deep places of the imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-trilling/there-is-no-connection-between-the-political-ideas-of-our-educated/) [Lionel Trilling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-trilling/) > [My education has allowed me to be more open to ideas which I would not have been had I not been as educated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adnan-sami/my-education-has-allowed-me-to-be-more-open-to-ideas-which-i-would/) [Adnan Sami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adnan-sami/) > [No, this customary aim of research by excavators is completely foreign to the historical work with which I am occupied... my sole and only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinrich-schliemann/no-this-customary-aim-of-research-by-excavators-is-completely-foreign/) [Heinrich Schliemann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinrich-schliemann/) > [I remember a period where my publisher said to me, 'Look, your historical work is selling much better than your contemporary work, so please…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/i-remember-a-period-where-my-publisher-said-to-me-look-your/) [Emma Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-donoghue/) > [I don't normally do pure historical work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/i-don-t-normally-do-pure-historical-work/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [It is a great pity that every human being does not, at an early stage of his life, have to write a historical work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/it-is-a-great-pity-that-every-human-being-does-not-at-an-early-stage/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [I wasn't an academic. I hated maths and science at school. I couldn't concentrate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dockery/i-wasn-t-an-academic-i-hated-maths-and-science-at-school-i-couldn-t/) [Michelle Dockery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-dockery/) > [I just wasn't academic. I wanted to be in the real world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-caudwell/i-just-wasn-t-academic-i-wanted-to-be-in-the-real-world/) [John Caudwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-caudwell/) > [I wasn't very academic at school, but the Wolsey Youth Theatre was the saving of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noma-dumezweni/i-wasn-t-very-academic-at-school-but-the-wolsey-youth-theatre-was-the/) [Noma Dumezweni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noma-dumezweni/) > [I was at a small private school in London. I wasn't very academic. My dad said to me, 'OK, you might as well leave,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pattinson/i-was-at-a-small-private-school-in-london-i-wasn-t-very-academic-my/) [Robert Pattinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-pattinson/) > [In fact I was slightly badly behaved at school and got in trouble. I would get a bee in my bonnet about something I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-colman/in-fact-i-was-slightly-badly-behaved-at-school-and-got-in-trouble-i/) [Olivia Colman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-colman/) > [All I can really remember doing was listening to the radio and listening to records when I was at school. I wasn't very academic,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrissie-hynde/all-i-can-really-remember-doing-was-listening-to-the-radio-and/) [Chrissie Hynde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chrissie-hynde/) > [There are definite reference points to older Depeche Mode records.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-gore/there-are-definite-reference-points-to-older-depeche-mode-records/) [Martin Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-gore/) ## More by Michael Heizer > [I have looked at so many photographs, I can not see them anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/i-have-looked-at-so-many-photographs-i-can-not-see-them-anymore/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [They are works of art that can be considered works of art but don't have to be in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/they-are-works-of-art-that-can-be-considered-works-of-art-but-don-t/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [Earth is the material with the most potential because it is the original source material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/earth-is-the-material-with-the-most-potential-because-it-is-the/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [Frank Gehry for instance likes to imagine his buildings as sculptures. I like to imagine my sculptures as architectural.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/frank-gehry-for-instance-likes-to-imagine-his-buildings-as-sculptures/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [The history of American art, in a way, begins with Jackson Pollock and his big paintings. This theme of bigness - all painters and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/the-history-of-american-art-in-a-way-begins-with-jackson-pollock-and/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [I wasn't political enough to write articles about myself or go to cocktail parties, meaning that not only has my art been pirated and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/i-wasn-t-political-enough-to-write-articles-about-myself-or-go-to/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [I make static art, not dynamic art. That's what I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/i-make-static-art-not-dynamic-art-that-s-what-i-do/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [The size thing is not some gimmick or attention-getting trick but a genuine undercurrent of the work. Frank Gehry for instance likes to imagine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/the-size-thing-is-not-some-gimmick-or-attention-getting-trick-but-a/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [I'm not a dogmatic, purist psychopath. There's an unfair image of me - mean, crazy, hostile. I'm really a very gentle person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/i-m-not-a-dogmatic-purist-psychopath-there-s-an-unfair-image-of-me/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [I come from an academic background. I wasn't raised to be into promoting myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/i-come-from-an-academic-background-i-wasn-t-raised-to-be-into/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [The type of work I like is pure and simple and profound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/the-type-of-work-i-like-is-pure-and-simple-and-profound/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [Artwork is not like a commercial business; there is no such thing as a schedule for art. You can't hurry art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/artwork-is-not-like-a-commercial-business-there-is-no-such-thing-as-a/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [A strong work of art really leaves people speechless. They feel a little angry because they don't understand it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/a-strong-work-of-art-really-leaves-people-speechless-they-feel-a/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [Landscape to me is a planar thing, just a view. Environment is everything down to the ecosystem. Big difference.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-heizer/landscape-to-me-is-a-planar-thing-just-a-view-environment-is/) [Michael Heizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-heizer/) > [I think size is the most unused quotient in the sculptor's repertoire because it requires lots of commitment and time. 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That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/i-write-about-presidents-that-means-i-write-about-guys-so-far-i-m/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/) [Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/) > [I learned a lot about myself at Oakmont.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-lowry/i-learned-a-lot-about-myself-at-oakmont/) [Shane Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-lowry/) > [I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Sport is not just about entertainment. It is equally about winning and losing, pooling and galvanising the energy of the youth, upgrading people's physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-ambani/sport-is-not-just-about-entertainment-it-is-equally-about-winning-and/) [Nita Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-ambani/) > [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/) [Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/) > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' 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