--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I paint life as I would like it to be," description: "\"I paint life as I would like it to be,\" — Norman Rockwell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78b/norman-rockwell-14034_artist_i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be-21_2126663.png" --- # I paint life as I would like it to be, ![“I paint life as I would like it to be,” quote by Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78b/norman-rockwell-14034_artist_i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be-21_2126663.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78b/norman-rockwell-14034_artist_i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be-21_2126663.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78b/norman-rockwell-14034_artist_i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be-21_2126663.png) > “I paint life as I would like it to be,” [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The artist envisions a future reality and creates it through imagination and effort. **In simple terms:** Imagine the life you want and act to make it real. Key Takeaway Visualize and pursue your ideal life. Themes creativity vision self‑determination Mood optimistic inspired Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - career planning - personal development - goal setting - creative projects Key Concepts visual art personal agency Questions to Reflect On - What does your ideal life look like? - How can you start shaping it today? A Different Perspective Vision alone isn’t enough without concrete steps. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-like/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Paint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint/) [Paint Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint-life-1667565/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) ## Related quotes > [“The sky is a canvas, so paint your own life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jada-berglund/the-sky-is-a-canvas-so-paint-your-own-life/) [Jada Berglund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jada-berglund/) > [The view of life I communicate in my pictures excludes the sordid and ugly. I paint life as I would like it to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/the-view-of-life-i-communicate-in-my-pictures-excludes-the-sordid-and/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [My purpose is to paint the life of my people as I know it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romare-bearden/my-purpose-is-to-paint-the-life-of-my-people-as-i-know-it/) [Romare Bearden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romare-bearden/) > [There was a whole language that I could never make function for myself; it revolved around words like 'tortured', 'struggle'. 'pain'.. .I could never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-rauschenberg/there-was-a-whole-language-that-i-could-never-make-function-for/) [Robert Rauschenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-rauschenberg/) > [I try to paint from life, but I had such a miserable experience with Bonaparte, who wouldn't sit still and kept mumbling about catching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-genn/i-try-to-paint-from-life-but-i-had-such-a-miserable-experience-with/) [Roman Genn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-genn/) > [“Do you want to paint your life using two colors (good and bad) or do you want to paint the best piece of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-edwards/do-you-want-to-paint-your-life-using-two-colors-good-and-bad-or-do/) [Helen Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-edwards/) > [I'm always going to take an experience and a fire beat and marry it all together with adult melodies. I try to paint, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-lennox/i-m-always-going-to-take-an-experience-and-a-fire-beat-and-marry-it/) [Ari Lennox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-lennox/) > [Wanna move out the hood and defeat that cancer I ask how she stay on her feet like dancers How she keep on adding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-b/wanna-move-out-the-hood-and-defeat-that-cancer-i-ask-how-she-stay-on/) [Lil B](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-b/) > [What inspires me to paint is life, my emotions, through my paintings I want people to understand that life isn't always happy but you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heart-evangelista/what-inspires-me-to-paint-is-life-my-emotions-through-my-paintings-i/) [Heart Evangelista](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heart-evangelista/) > [I knew very early that somehow I would sing and draw and paint my whole life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-bennett/i-knew-very-early-that-somehow-i-would-sing-and-draw-and-paint-my/) [Tony Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-bennett/) > [“If you’re to choose to paint your life today... What will it be? Remember, you’re the artist, not the canvas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-uchendu/if-you-re-to-choose-to-paint-your-life-today-what-will-it-be-remember/) [Val Uchendu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-uchendu/) > [“Life is about using all the skills in your toolbox. Paint your life with vibrant color, soothing music, and hang around exciting people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janiece-rendon/life-is-about-using-all-the-skills-in-your-toolbox-paint-your-life/) [Janiece Rendon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janiece-rendon/) > [“We can paint our life with the color of our choice. But there are people who have only one color, they don’t have any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhuwan-thapaliya/we-can-paint-our-life-with-the-color-of-our-choice-but-there-are/) [Bhuwan Thapaliya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhuwan-thapaliya/) > [Wherever I wander off to, when I draw, when I paint, I get my life back. I am lucky that I am an Artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiroko-sakai/wherever-i-wander-off-to-when-i-draw-when-i-paint-i-get-my-life-back/) [Hiroko Sakai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiroko-sakai/) > [“To create works of art meant no less to him than to paint life, not mere reality, but the principle of life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingo-walther/to-create-works-of-art-meant-no-less-to-him-than-to-paint-life-not/) [Ingo Walther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ingo-walther/) ## More by Norman Rockwell > [I unconsciously decided that, even if it wasn't an ideal world, it should be. So I painted only the ideal aspects of it -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-unconsciously-decided-that-even-if-it-wasn-t-an-ideal-world-it/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [“Commonplaces never become tiresome. It is we who become tired when we cease to be curious and appreciative. We find that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/commonplaces-never-become-tiresome-it-is-we-who-become-tired-when-we/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [Without thinking too much about it in specific terms, I was showing the America I knew and observed to others who might not have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/without-thinking-too-much-about-it-in-specific-terms-i-was-showing/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [I keep the pornographic stuff in a bus station locker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-keep-the-pornographic-stuff-in-a-bus-station-locker/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [I'll never have enough time to paint all the pictures I'd like to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-ll-never-have-enough-time-to-paint-all-the-pictures-i-d-like-to/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [The story is the first thing and the last thing,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/the-story-is-the-first-thing-and-the-last-thing/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [I'm tired, but proud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-m-tired-but-proud/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [You must first spend some time getting your model to relax. Then you'll get a natural expression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/you-must-first-spend-some-time-getting-your-model-to-relax-then-you/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [A face in the picture would bother me, so I'd rub it out with the turpentine and do it over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/a-face-in-the-picture-would-bother-me-so-i-d-rub-it-out-with-the/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [I had a couple of million dollars' worth of... stock once. And now it's not worth much more than wallpaper. I guess I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-had-a-couple-of-million-dollars-worth-of-stock-once-and-now-it-s/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [“I unconsciously decided that, even if it wasn't an ideal world, it should be so and painted only the ideal aspects of it -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-unconsciously-decided-that-even-if-it-wasn-t-an-ideal-world-it-2/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [It wouldn't be right for me to clown around when I'm painting a president.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/it-wouldn-t-be-right-for-me-to-clown-around-when-i-m-painting-a/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [Very interesting for an old duffer like me to try his hand at something new. If I don't do that once in a while,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/very-interesting-for-an-old-duffer-like-me-to-try-his-hand-at/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [ The Balopticon \[a machine that projects photos on canvas to trace the lines\] is an evil, inartistic, habit-forming, lazy and vicious machine! It also… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/the-balopticon-a-machine-that-projects-photos-on-canvas-to-trace-the/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) > [No man with a conscience can just bat out illustrations. He's got to put all his talent and feeling into them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/no-man-with-a-conscience-can-just-bat-out-illustrations-he-s-got-to/) [Norman Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) [Explore all 48 Norman Rockwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "I paint life as I would like it to be,", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Norman Rockwell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Artist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78b/norman-rockwell-14034_artist_i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be-21_2126663.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78b/norman-rockwell-14034_artist_i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be-21_2126663.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78b/norman-rockwell-14034_artist_i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be-21_2126663.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I paint life as I would like it to be,” — Norman Rockwell", "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": "Norman Rockwell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-rockwell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I paint life as I would...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-rockwell/i-paint-life-as-i-would-like-it-to-be/#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 } } ] } ```