--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Matisse makes a drawing, then he makes a…" description: "\"Matisse makes a drawing, then he makes a copy of it. He copies it five times, ten times, always clarifying the line. He’s convinced that the last, the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/405/pablo-picasso-552_clarifying_matisse-makes-a-drawing-then-he-makes-a_1046286.jpg" --- # Matisse makes a drawing, then he makes a copy of it. He… ![“Matisse makes a drawing, then he makes a copy of it. He copies it five times, ten times, always clarifying the line. He’s convinced that the last, the most stripped down, is the best, the purest, the definitive one; and in fact, most of the time, it was the first. In drawing, nothing is better…” quote by Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/405/pablo-picasso-552_clarifying_matisse-makes-a-drawing-then-he-makes-a_1046286.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/405/pablo-picasso-552_clarifying_matisse-makes-a-drawing-then-he-makes-a_1046286.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/405/pablo-picasso-552_clarifying_matisse-makes-a-drawing-then-he-makes-a_1046286.jpg) > “Matisse makes a drawing, then he makes a copy of it. He copies it five times, ten times, always clarifying the line. He’s convinced that the last, the most stripped down, is the best, the purest, the definitive one; and in fact, most of the time, it was the first. In drawing, nothing is better than the first attempt.” [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Repeated refinement reveals that the simplest, earliest version often holds the truest essence. **In simple terms:** First attempts are often the most authentic. Key Takeaway Value initial effort and simplify. Themes art creativity process simplicity Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - drawing practice - design brainstorming - creative workshops Key Concepts iteration minimalism authenticity Questions to Reflect On - How can you trust your first instinct? - When should you stop refining? A Different Perspective Later versions can become over‑refined and lose vitality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“Drawing makes you look at the world more closely. It helps you see what you’re looking at more clearly. Did you know that?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-almond/drawing-makes-you-look-at-the-world-more-closely-it-helps-you-see/) [David Almond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-almond/) > [“Drawing makes you see things clearer, and clearer, and clearer still. The image is passing through you in a physiological way, into your brain,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-gayford/drawing-makes-you-see-things-clearer-and-clearer-and-clearer-still/) [Martin Gayford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-gayford/) > [Drawing makes you see things clearer, and clearer and clearer still, until your eyes ache.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/drawing-makes-you-see-things-clearer-and-clearer-and-clearer-still-2/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [It is not bright colors but good drawing that makes figures beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/titian/it-is-not-bright-colors-but-good-drawing-that-makes-figures-beautiful/) [Titian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/titian/) > [In the end there is only Matisse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/in-the-end-there-is-only-matisse/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [All things considered, there is only Matisse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/all-things-considered-there-is-only-matisse/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Rather than managing by clarifying events, the creative process may require raising the level of uncertainty. Sometimes this can be done by issuing a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kao/rather-than-managing-by-clarifying-events-the-creative-process-may/) [John Kao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kao/) > [Guarding your heart and protecting your dignity are a little bit more important than clarifying the emotions of someone who's only texting you back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/guarding-your-heart-and-protecting-your-dignity-are-a-little-bit-more-2/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [Before my encounter with Thomist philosophy through Maritain, I had almost reached the same conclusions through the logical development of my work, intuition and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gino-severini/before-my-encounter-with-thomist-philosophy-through-maritain-i-had/) [Gino Severini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gino-severini/) > [In some ways clarifying a vision is easy. A more difficult challenge comes in facing current reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-senge/in-some-ways-clarifying-a-vision-is-easy-a-more-difficult-challenge/) [Peter Senge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-senge/) > [So if we look at progress, or evolution, or we look at accomplishment in our life, the key is to be continually moving on,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-merzel/so-if-we-look-at-progress-or-evolution-or-we-look-at-accomplishment/) [Dennis Merzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-merzel/) > [What you feel when you're writing is the relief of thinking: if you write the sentence correctly, you're clarifying. If you write the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivian-gornick/what-you-feel-when-you-re-writing-is-the-relief-of-thinking-if-you/) [Vivian Gornick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivian-gornick/) > [During periods of relaxation after concentrated intellectual activity, the intuitive mind seems to take over and can produce the sudden clarifying insights which give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fritjof-capra/during-periods-of-relaxation-after-concentrated-intellectual-activity/) [Fritjof Capra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fritjof-capra/) > [I encourage all you superior seekers in the secret depths to devote yourselves to penetrating and clarifying the self, as earnestly as you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hakuin-ekaku/i-encourage-all-you-superior-seekers-in-the-secret-depths-to-devote/) [Hakuin Ekaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hakuin-ekaku/) > [We embark unhesitatingly on the path, in a direction that is absolutely right and urgent, supported by everyone, in the knowledge that this path…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yehudi-menuhin/we-embark-unhesitatingly-on-the-path-in-a-direction-that-is/) [Yehudi Menuhin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yehudi-menuhin/) ## More by Pablo Picasso > [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/) > [When I haven't any blue I use red.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/when-i-haven-t-any-blue-i-use-red/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [The Parthenon is really only a farmyard over which someone put a roof; colonades and sculptures were added because there were people in Athens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/the-parthenon-is-really-only-a-farmyard-over-which-someone-put-a-roof/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [By amusing myself with all these games, all this nonsense, all these picture puzzles, I became famous... I am only a public entertainer who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/by-amusing-myself-with-all-these-games-all-this-nonsense-all-these/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [If I paint a hammer and sickle people may think it is a representation of Communism, but for me it is only a hammer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/if-i-paint-a-hammer-and-sickle-people-may-think-it-is-a/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [One never knows what one is going to do. One starts a painting and then it becomes something quite different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/one-never-knows-what-one-is-going-to-do-one-starts-a-painting-and/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Now there is fame! Of all - hunger, misery, the incomprehension by the public - fame is by far the worst. It is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/now-there-is-fame-of-all-hunger-misery-the-incomprehension-by-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [It takes a long time to become young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/it-takes-a-long-time-to-become-young/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [We all know that Art is not truth. Art is a lie that makes us realize truth at least the truth that is given…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/we-all-know-that-art-is-not-truth-art-is-a-lie-that-makes-us-realize/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [You see these thick curtains shut out the daylight: artificial light suits me a great deal better; it's absolutely steady, and much more exciting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/you-see-these-thick-curtains-shut-out-the-daylight-artificial-light/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [The best calculation is the absence of calculation. Once you have attained a certain level of recognition, others generally figure that when you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/the-best-calculation-is-the-absence-of-calculation-once-you-have/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Action is the foundational key to all success. --Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/action-is-the-foundational-key-to-all-success-pablo-picasso/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [The earth doesn't have a housekeeper to do the dusting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/the-earth-doesn-t-have-a-housekeeper-to-do-the-dusting/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [God is really only another artist. He invented the giraffe, the elephant and the cat. He has no real style, He just goes on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/god-is-really-only-another-artist-he-invented-the-giraffe-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes shabbier, the past forgotten, and the future worth living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/a-baby-will-make-love-stronger-days-shorter-nights-longer-bankroll/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Explore all 477 Pablo Picasso quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) ## 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": "Matisse makes a drawing, then he makes a copy of it. He copies it five times, ten times, always clarifying the line. He’s convinced that the last, the most stripped down, is the best, the purest, the definitive one; and in fact, most of the time, it was the first. 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