--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A painter, a sculptor, a writer, they can…" description: "\"A painter, a sculptor, a writer, they can express freely. They don't affect society as a whole. We build buildings that have a purpose, that stay there..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d2/moshe-safdie-21860_affect_a-painter-a-sculptor-a-writer-they-can-e_655777.jpg" --- # A painter, a sculptor, a writer, they can express freely… ![“A painter, a sculptor, a writer, they can express freely. They don't affect society as a whole. We build buildings that have a purpose, that stay there for hundreds of years or decades.” quote by Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d2/moshe-safdie-21860_affect_a-painter-a-sculptor-a-writer-they-can-e_655777.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d2/moshe-safdie-21860_affect_a-painter-a-sculptor-a-writer-they-can-e_655777.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d2/moshe-safdie-21860_affect_a-painter-a-sculptor-a-writer-they-can-e_655777.jpg) > “A painter, a sculptor, a writer, they can express freely. They don't affect society as a whole. We build buildings that have a purpose, that stay there for hundreds of years or decades.” [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists create personal, fleeting works, while architects design lasting, functional structures that serve society. **In simple terms:** Artists make temporary art; architects build lasting utility. Key Takeaway Value both expression and purpose. Themes art architecture purpose legacy society Mood reflective thoughtful analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - designing public spaces - urban planning - community projects - personal artistic practice - historical preservation Key Concepts creativity functionality temporal vs permanent human impact cultural contribution Questions to Reflect On - How can architecture incorporate artistic freedom? - What responsibilities do creators have to society? A Different Perspective Art alone may not address practical needs; architecture can lack emotional depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Buildings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buildings/) [Painter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painter/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Sculptor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sculptor/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [That I have the right to express myself freely at all times in all circumstances entails the idea that free speech is a 'basic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/that-i-have-the-right-to-express-myself-freely-at-all-times-in-all/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [“Rules?" said Roark. "Here are my rules: what can be done with one substance must never be done with another. No two materials are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/rules-said-roark-here-are-my-rules-what-can-be-done-with-one/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [When corruption is king, there is no accountability of leadership and no trust in authority. Society devolves to the basic units of family and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuhu-ribadu/when-corruption-is-king-there-is-no-accountability-of-leadership-and/) [Nuhu Ribadu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuhu-ribadu/) > [Any society that you build will have its limits. And outside the limits of any society the unruly and heroic tramps will wander with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renzo-novatore/any-society-that-you-build-will-have-its-limits-and-outside-the/) [Renzo Novatore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renzo-novatore/) > [That's one of the cool things about fame. 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Last night I made a cube.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/i-m-an-ice-sculptor-last-night-i-made-a-cube/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [Carving is a source of joy to the artist. . . . To attack the raw material, gradually to extract a shape out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristide-maillol/carving-is-a-source-of-joy-to-the-artist-to-attack-the-raw-material/) Aristide Maillol > [A gentleman is not born but crafted. He had to work on himself in the same way as a sculptor shaped a rough stone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/a-gentleman-is-not-born-but-crafted-he-had-to-work-on-himself-in-the/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) ## More by Moshe Safdie > [A house is not a machine! It's something else for living - but not a machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/a-house-is-not-a-machine-it-s-something-else-for-living-but-not-a/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [We are producing urban places which are disjointed and disconnected and not worthy of our civilisation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/we-are-producing-urban-places-which-are-disjointed-and-disconnected/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [I want my children to be able to meet and play and communicate with many other children on their own, not only when they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/i-want-my-children-to-be-able-to-meet-and-play-and-communicate-with/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [There is a profound ethic to architecture which is different from the other arts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/there-is-a-profound-ethic-to-architecture-which-is-different-from-the/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [We live in a complicated, oppressive world with enormous cities and vast populations, and I try to contribute by making it more light and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/we-live-in-a-complicated-oppressive-world-with-enormous-cities-and/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [Who knows, maybe I am simply a talented architect?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/who-knows-maybe-i-am-simply-a-talented-architect/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [I want my buildings to take root and look as if they've always been there. 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He who seeks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/he-who-seeks-truth-shall-find-beauty-he-who-seeks-beauty-shall-find/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [This is the contradictory desire in our utopia. We want to live in a small community with which we can identify and yet we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/this-is-the-contradictory-desire-in-our-utopia-we-want-to-live-in-a/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [Countries and places have a history, a story, and a culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/countries-and-places-have-a-history-a-story-and-a-culture/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [Except for the projects in Israel, my being Israeli has contributed negatively to my global activity. It is hard for me, for example, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/except-for-the-projects-in-israel-my-being-israeli-has-contributed/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [I don't think I have a signature style that announces, 'This is a Safdie.' But I think star architects have seized an opportunity to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/i-don-t-think-i-have-a-signature-style-that-announces-this-is-a/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) > [I'm completely taken and impressed by the planning authority of Singapore and its Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). It's the most cutting-edge agency in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-safdie/i-m-completely-taken-and-impressed-by-the-planning-authority-of/) [Moshe Safdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) [Explore all 28 Moshe Safdie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-safdie/) ## More Affect quotes > [That is the real problem of depression - a condition which will affect an estimated one in five of the population at some point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-andreae/that-is-the-real-problem-of-depression-a-condition-which-will-affect/) [Giles Andreae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-andreae/) > [Everything affects hip-hop. The question is, how does it affect the money that corporations are going to invest to put out different kinds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-i-am/everything-affects-hip-hop-the-question-is-how-does-it-affect-the/) [will.i.am](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-i-am/) > [I almost always mess up. 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