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Completion Quote by Pablo Picasso

“Formerly pictures used to move towards completion in progressive stages. Each day would bring something new. A picture was a sum of additions. With me, picture is a sum of destructions. I do a picture, then I destroy it. But in the long run nothing is lost; the red that I took away from one place…” quote by Pablo Picasso
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“Formerly pictures used to move towards completion in progressive stages. Each day would bring something new. A picture was a sum of additions. With me, picture is a sum of destructions. I do a picture, then I destroy it. But in the long run nothing is lost; the red that I took away from one place turns up somewhere else.”

Pablo Picasso

About This Quote

Source Interview: 1972, Pablo Picasso on his artistic process, 1972

Picasso describes his method of creating and then destroying images, emphasizing that the removed elements reappear elsewhere, reflecting a cycle of loss and redistribution.

In simple terms: He makes a picture, destroys it, and the lost parts reappear elsewhere.

Key Takeaway

Embrace transformation and redistribution in creative work.

Themes

creativity destruction redistribution artistic process

Mood

reflective inquisitive

Type

philosophical artistic

When to use this quote

  • painting
  • digital art
  • design
  • conceptual art

Key Concepts

impermanence negative space recycling

Questions to Reflect On

  • How does destruction reveal new possibilities?
  • What can be reclaimed from what we discard?
A Different Perspective

The process may seem wasteful, but it reveals hidden structures and ideas.

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