--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Painting doesn't have a function, not in…" description: "\"Painting doesn't have a function, not in the way that music or film does... I mean, you can dance to music. Music can be used for a soundtrack, so it h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fc/peter-doig-23729_artist_painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in_160925.jpg" --- # Painting doesn't have a function, not in the way that… ![“Painting doesn't have a function, not in the way that music or film does... I mean, you can dance to music. Music can be used for a soundtrack, so it has a function in that sense, beyond itself. But painting doesn't... But I do believe that painting has a purpose.” quote by Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fc/peter-doig-23729_artist_painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in_160925.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fc/peter-doig-23729_artist_painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in_160925.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fc/peter-doig-23729_artist_painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in_160925.jpg) > “Painting doesn't have a function, not in the way that music or film does... I mean, you can dance to music. Music can be used for a soundtrack, so it has a function in that sense, beyond itself. But painting doesn't... But I do believe that painting has a purpose.” [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Painting is viewed as autonomous art, lacking utilitarian purpose unlike music or film, yet it can still convey meaning and intention. **In simple terms:** Painting is seen as self‑contained, not functional like music, but it can still have purpose. Key Takeaway Recognize art’s intrinsic value beyond practical use. Themes art purpose autonomy meaning expression Mood contemplative inquisitive Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - gallery exhibitions - personal reflection - art education - creative practice Key Concepts aesthetic theory intentionality symbolism Questions to Reflect On - How does you find purpose in visual art? - Can art be both autonomous and purposeful? A Different Perspective Its impact may be subjective and not universally understood. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Soundtracks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soundtracks/) ## Related quotes > [The arts teach and moralise by their beauty alone, not by translating a philosophical or social formula. For the truly artistic person, painting has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theophile-gautier/the-arts-teach-and-moralise-by-their-beauty-alone-not-by-translating/) [Theophile Gautier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theophile-gautier/) > [If painting doesn't offer a way to dream and create emotions, then it's not worth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-soulages/if-painting-doesn-t-offer-a-way-to-dream-and-create-emotions-then-it/) [Pierre Soulages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-soulages/) > [I believe in painting and I believe in eating too. What can we do? We have to eat, we have to paint, we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerhard-richter/i-believe-in-painting-and-i-believe-in-eating-too-what-can-we-do-we/) [Gerhard Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerhard-richter/) > [Painting doesn't freeze time. It circulates and recycles time like a wheel that turns. Those who were first might well be last. Painting is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlene-dumas/painting-doesn-t-freeze-time-it-circulates-and-recycles-time-like-a/) [Marlene Dumas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlene-dumas/) > [My approach to painting doesn't involve any heavy thinking about how am I going to present this, what am I going to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rolf-harris/my-approach-to-painting-doesn-t-involve-any-heavy-thinking-about-how/) [Rolf Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rolf-harris/) > [What's great about it is that painting doesn't move. And so in the 21st century, when we're used to clicking and browsing and having…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/what-s-great-about-it-is-that-painting-doesn-t-move-and-so-in-the/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [I do believe that painting can change the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hockney/i-do-believe-that-painting-can-change-the-world/) [David Hockney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hockney/) > [I believe that painting should come through the avenues of meditation rather than the canals of action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-tobey/i-believe-that-painting-should-come-through-the-avenues-of-meditation/) [Mark Tobey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-tobey/) > [People who believe in painting... realize there is something greater than just coming up with an idea, and executing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-messer/people-who-believe-in-painting-realize-there-is-something-greater/) Sam Messer > [“A painting that doesn't shock isn't worth painting-Marcel Duchamp”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-goldfarb-marquis/a-painting-that-doesn-t-shock-isn-t-worth-painting-marcel-duchamp/) Alice Goldfarb Marquis > [I always wanted to do something creative, but as much as I'm creative, it's in a really hard-core, right-brained way. For me, painting doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-prince-ramus/i-always-wanted-to-do-something-creative-but-as-much-as-i-m-creative/) [Joshua Prince-Ramus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-prince-ramus/) > [I believe, even when I'm doing my standup or my acting or whatever I'm doing, I believe in painting pictures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-b-smoove/i-believe-even-when-i-m-doing-my-standup-or-my-acting-or-whatever-i-m/) [J. B. Smoove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-b-smoove/) > [A painting that doesn't shock isn't worth painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/a-painting-that-doesn-t-shock-isn-t-worth-painting/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [I believe all painting and art should be uplifting for the viewer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/i-believe-all-painting-and-art-should-be-uplifting-for-the-viewer/) [Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/) > [Painting doesn't mean just describing; it's a state of spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caryl-churchill/painting-doesn-t-mean-just-describing-it-s-a-state-of-spirit/) [Caryl Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caryl-churchill/) ## More by Peter Doig > [A photo is like a map, a way of giving me a foot into a kind of reality I want... I'm not trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/a-photo-is-like-a-map-a-way-of-giving-me-a-foot-into-a-kind-of/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [It's still an escape for me, painting, so it also takes me elsewhere. I don't think I would do it otherwise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/it-s-still-an-escape-for-me-painting-so-it-also-takes-me-elsewhere-i/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [I'm not one of those artists having people there lying around on their paintings, you know, like Hockney or whoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/i-m-not-one-of-those-artists-having-people-there-lying-around-on/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [There could be a hundred paintings in every one painting, depending on when you stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/there-could-be-a-hundred-paintings-in-every-one-painting-depending-on/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [I think if I was Trinidadian, I would latch more on to the myths and romanticise the place more. I don't think it's my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/i-think-if-i-was-trinidadian-i-would-latch-more-on-to-the-myths-and/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [When I was growing up, I never felt that I belonged anywhere because we never lived in a house for more than three months.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/when-i-was-growing-up-i-never-felt-that-i-belonged-anywhere-because/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [How do you complete a painting, really? There are paintings by so many different artists that are interesting precisely because they haven't really been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/how-do-you-complete-a-painting-really-there-are-paintings-by-so-many/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [I would never finish a painting if I didnt have a deadline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/i-would-never-finish-a-painting-if-i-didnt-have-a-deadline/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [I constantly have to negotiate with my doubts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/i-constantly-have-to-negotiate-with-my-doubts/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [If you are someone like Jeff Koons, and you have to work out how to make a big chrome heart or something, then there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/if-you-are-someone-like-jeff-koons-and-you-have-to-work-out-how-to/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [You cannot just be working in a vast, air-conditioned loft space and think you are going to make a decent painting. Francis Bacon had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/you-cannot-just-be-working-in-a-vast-air-conditioned-loft-space-and/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [As an artist, you are aware there is this strange money market out there, but you have no sense of how it works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/as-an-artist-you-are-aware-there-is-this-strange-money-market-out/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [I sometimes wish I had never had to sell a painting. Every painting you make represents the time it was made and how you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/i-sometimes-wish-i-had-never-had-to-sell-a-painting-every-painting/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [I also learned that you are affected by your environment, even if you try not to be. Color, light that is, matters because you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/i-also-learned-that-you-are-affected-by-your-environment-even-if-you/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) > [I do feel Scottish in some way. Maybe it's to do with visiting my grandparents here every summer as a child, but I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/i-do-feel-scottish-in-some-way-maybe-it-s-to-do-with-visiting-my/) [Peter Doig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) [Explore all 25 Peter Doig quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/) ## 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": "Painting doesn't have a function, not in the way that music or film does... I mean, you can dance to music. Music can be used for a soundtrack, so it has a function in that sense, beyond itself. But painting doesn't... But I do believe that painting has a purpose.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Peter Doig" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in-the-way-that-music-or-film/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Artist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in-the-way-that-music-or-film/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fc/peter-doig-23729_artist_painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in_160925.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fc/peter-doig-23729_artist_painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in_160925.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fc/peter-doig-23729_artist_painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in_160925.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Painting doesn't have a function, not in the way that music or film does... I mean, you can dance to music…” — Peter Doig", "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": "Peter Doig", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-doig/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Painting doesn't have a function, not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in-the-way-that-music-or-film/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-doig/painting-doesn-t-have-a-function-not-in-the-way-that-music-or-film/#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 } } ] } ```