--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: So about twenty years ago I gave up on…" description: "\"So about twenty years ago I gave up on painting - and got into terrible debt after buying a load of camera gear!\" — Nigel Dennis" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/999/nigel-dennis-24689_artist_so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-p_3029220.jpg" --- # So about twenty years ago I gave up on painting - and got… ![“So about twenty years ago I gave up on painting - and got into terrible debt after buying a load of camera gear!” quote by Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/999/nigel-dennis-24689_artist_so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-p_3029220.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/999/nigel-dennis-24689_artist_so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-p_3029220.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/999/nigel-dennis-24689_artist_so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-p_3029220.jpg) > “So about twenty years ago I gave up on painting - and got into terrible debt after buying a load of camera gear!” [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Acknowledgment of abandoning art for practical needs, leading to financial hardship. **In simple terms:** Giving up art caused debt. Key Takeaway Consider financial risks before changing careers. Themes career change financial risk artistic sacrifice Mood reflective cautious Type advice personal When to use this quote - career planning - budgeting - creative pursuits Key Concepts economics psychology Questions to Reflect On - What would you have done differently? - Can you balance art and finances? A Different Perspective Risk of regret if passion is suppressed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Buying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buying/) [Cameras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Twenties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twenties/) ## Related quotes > [Last year my boyfriend gave me a painting - a very personal one. I really prefer personal gifts or ones made by someone for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minnie-driver/last-year-my-boyfriend-gave-me-a-painting-a-very-personal-one-i/) [Minnie Driver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minnie-driver/) > [I gave up painting by 16. I secretly thought I would have been Rembrandt by then.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/i-gave-up-painting-by-16-i-secretly-thought-i-would-have-been/) [Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/) > [I think it's about time we gave up religion and got back to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lenny-bruce/i-think-it-s-about-time-we-gave-up-religion-and-got-back-to-god/) [Lenny Bruce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lenny-bruce/) > [Its okay if you gave up and walked out on me, I gave up on myself a long time ago and I wasn't expecting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmine-laura/its-okay-if-you-gave-up-and-walked-out-on-me-i-gave-up-on-myself-a/) [Jasmine Laura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmine-laura/) > [I decided not to give the haters the satisfaction that they got me so bad I gave up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-black/i-decided-not-to-give-the-haters-the-satisfaction-that-they-got-me-so/) [Rebecca Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-black/) > [We were 6 feet under. A lot of people gave up on us, including fans and critics and show promoters and record labels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacoby-shaddix/we-were-6-feet-under-a-lot-of-people-gave-up-on-us-including-fans-and/) [Jacoby Shaddix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacoby-shaddix/) > [I sped through heaven and saw god at work. I suffered holy pains. I dropped all my defenses and was afraid of nothing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/i-sped-through-heaven-and-saw-god-at-work-i-suffered-holy-pains-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Gracie: "Don't give up, Blanche. Women don't do that. Look at Betsy Ross, Martha Washington-they didn't give up. Look at Nina Jones." Blanche Morton:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gracie-allen/gracie-don-t-give-up-blanche-women-don-t-do-that-look-at-betsy-ross/) [Gracie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gracie-allen/) > [I sort of gave up on this whole human adventure a long time ago, divorced myself from it emotionally. It gives me an artistic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/i-sort-of-gave-up-on-this-whole-human-adventure-a-long-time-ago/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [What would happen if you were to allow everything to be exactly as it is? If you gave up the need for control, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adyashanti/what-would-happen-if-you-were-to-allow-everything-to-be-exactly-as-it/) [Adyashanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adyashanti/) > [Even in my really bad, drugged-out days, I didn't go away. I still toured, still did interviews. I never gave up the fight. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-nicks/even-in-my-really-bad-drugged-out-days-i-didn-t-go-away-i-still/) [Stevie Nicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-nicks/) > [Declaring victory without war .. the belief that India gave up the option of war under American pressure is totally wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atal-bihari-vajpayee/declaring-victory-without-war-the-belief-that-india-gave-up-the/) [Atal Bihari Vajpayee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atal-bihari-vajpayee/) > [In 1969, I gave up women and alcohol - it was the worst 20 minutes of my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-best/in-1969-i-gave-up-women-and-alcohol-it-was-the-worst-20-minutes-of-my/) [George Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-best/) > [I think that at a certain age, say fifteen or sixteen, poetry is like masturbation. But later in life good poets burn their early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-think-that-at-a-certain-age-say-fifteen-or-sixteen-poetry-is-like/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [If we gave up our freedom as the price of security, we would no longer be the great nation that we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/if-we-gave-up-our-freedom-as-the-price-of-security-we-would-no-longer/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) ## More by Nigel Dennis > [I concentrate on the southern African subcontinent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/i-concentrate-on-the-southern-african-subcontinent/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [I also had a tremendous passion for art and read a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/i-also-had-a-tremendous-passion-for-art-and-read-a-lot/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [But then one is always excited by descriptions of money changing hands. It's much more fundamental than sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/but-then-one-is-always-excited-by-descriptions-of-money-changing/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [ \[Agatha Christie\] is fond of quoting the witty wife who once said, 'an archaeologist is the best husband any woman can have; the older… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/agatha-christie-is-fond-of-quoting-the-witty-wife-who-once-said-an/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [I would never dream, for example, of going to The States to photograph your wildlife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/i-would-never-dream-for-example-of-going-to-the-states-to-photograph/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [A large wildlife book, start to finish, could take one to two years, but then I would expect to get several good (nature) magazine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/a-large-wildlife-book-start-to-finish-could-take-one-to-two-years-but/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [I carry a notebook full of sketches of pictures I want to take - they are really scruffy sketches, but at least I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/i-carry-a-notebook-full-of-sketches-of-pictures-i-want-to-take-they/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [Big game photography in Africa is mainly done from a vehicle, so then I feel I might as well take the lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/big-game-photography-in-africa-is-mainly-done-from-a-vehicle-so-then/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [Currently I am working on another three books, doing a lot of magazine work, am shooting for fifteen stock agencies, plus my own photo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/currently-i-am-working-on-another-three-books-doing-a-lot-of-magazine/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [I think few wives would have encouraged this kind of drastic and reckless career shift!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/i-think-few-wives-would-have-encouraged-this-kind-of-drastic-and/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [I hope to goodness I would not still be working in the corporate world - the money is OK but it is no life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/i-hope-to-goodness-i-would-not-still-be-working-in-the-corporate/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [For the first few years we lived in a tiny rented cottage at the bottom of a friend's garden. We often joked that there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/for-the-first-few-years-we-lived-in-a-tiny-rented-cottage-at-the/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [Most acts of assent require far more courage than most acts of protest, since courage is clearly a readiness to risk self-humiliation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/most-acts-of-assent-require-far-more-courage-than-most-acts-of/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [Even for an area I know well, I prepare a shooting list of subjects I need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/even-for-an-area-i-know-well-i-prepare-a-shooting-list-of-subjects-i/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) > [I also like flyfishing - maybe I would have figured a way to make a living out of that?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/i-also-like-flyfishing-maybe-i-would-have-figured-a-way-to-make-a/) [Nigel Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) [Explore all 24 Nigel Dennis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "So about twenty years ago I gave up on painting - and got into terrible debt after buying a load of camera gear!", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nigel Dennis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-painting-and-got-into-terrible/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Artist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-painting-and-got-into-terrible/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/999/nigel-dennis-24689_artist_so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-p_3029220.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/999/nigel-dennis-24689_artist_so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-p_3029220.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/999/nigel-dennis-24689_artist_so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-p_3029220.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“So about twenty years ago I gave up on painting - and got into terrible debt after buying a load of camera…” — Nigel Dennis", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Nigel Dennis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-dennis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "So about twenty years ago I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-painting-and-got-into-terrible/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-dennis/so-about-twenty-years-ago-i-gave-up-on-painting-and-got-into-terrible/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```