--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not so interested in the effort that…" description: "\"I'm not so interested in the effort that it takes to have a self-promotional outlook. I believe in being quiet and making my work and just trying to ma..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/philip-taaffe-29864_believe_i-m-not-so-interested-in-the-effort-that_993677.jpg" --- # I'm not so interested in the effort that it takes to have… ![“I'm not so interested in the effort that it takes to have a self-promotional outlook. I believe in being quiet and making my work and just trying to make discoveries and let the painting evolve.” quote by Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/philip-taaffe-29864_believe_i-m-not-so-interested-in-the-effort-that_993677.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/philip-taaffe-29864_believe_i-m-not-so-interested-in-the-effort-that_993677.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7f/philip-taaffe-29864_believe_i-m-not-so-interested-in-the-effort-that_993677.jpg) > “I'm not so interested in the effort that it takes to have a self-promotional outlook. I believe in being quiet and making my work and just trying to make discoveries and let the painting evolve.” [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Value quiet dedication and let creative work develop naturally, avoiding self-promotion. **In simple terms:** Work quietly and let art evolve on its own. Key Takeaway Focus on creation, not self‑promotion. Themes creativity humility authenticity process Mood contemplative determined Type artistic philosophical When to use this quote - studio practice - research - personal projects - collaborations Key Concepts artistic integrity self‑efficacy Questions to Reflect On - What does self‑promotion mean to you? - How can you balance humility with visibility? A Different Perspective Risk of being overlooked or undervalued. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) ## Related quotes > [I feel like people who criticize authors for being self-promotional fail to recognize that a lot of times their ability to continue writing hinges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-sittenfeld/i-feel-like-people-who-criticize-authors-for-being-self-promotional/) [Curtis Sittenfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-sittenfeld/) > [Start a painting with fresh ideas, and then let the painting replace your ideas with its ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-darby-bannard/start-a-painting-with-fresh-ideas-and-then-let-the-painting-replace/) [Walter Darby Bannard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-darby-bannard/) > [You do need to maintain some of yourself and know who you are, but that doesn't mean you can't evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-show/you-do-need-to-maintain-some-of-yourself-and-know-who-you-are-but/) [Grant Show](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-show/) > [The Kabbalah describes angels as bundles of light, meaning intelligence, consciousness. 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It comes from my own idiosyncratic background and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/what-excites-me-and-what-i-find-most-compelling-is-clearly-not-what/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [Art exists through the act of making. It has to somehow be made manifest to another person. It has to do with what one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/art-exists-through-the-act-of-making-it-has-to-somehow-be-made/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [I think that is the role of the artist in society - the cultural role of the artist is to perform a healing function.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-think-that-is-the-role-of-the-artist-in-society-the-cultural-role/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [There is a tendency in my work toward minimalism, in terms of stripping away the unnecessary. I am seeking a tightly ordered gestalt, usually.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/there-is-a-tendency-in-my-work-toward-minimalism-in-terms-of/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [It's hard to fathom the psychology of the economics of art. I don't quite understand it, and I don't necessarily want to understand it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/it-s-hard-to-fathom-the-psychology-of-the-economics-of-art-i-don-t/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [I have a fairly unwieldy set of concerns that go into determining what I do in the paintings, such as the history of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-have-a-fairly-unwieldy-set-of-concerns-that-go-into-determining/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [An artist makes something to be physically experienced by another person. It's a raw, freely chosen, interpersonal relationship between the maker and the viewer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/an-artist-makes-something-to-be-physically-experienced-by-another/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [Ideas in art may be quite evident, and sometimes they're hidden. Sometimes they're simple, and sometimes they're quite complex. Great works of art can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/ideas-in-art-may-be-quite-evident-and-sometimes-they-re-hidden/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [I have been very influenced by the Japanese concept of space - the preciousness of space, and how one's environment can be shaped to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-have-been-very-influenced-by-the-japanese-concept-of-space-the/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [I will do a lot of research and create a lot of material for use in one painting. And then I go on discovering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-will-do-a-lot-of-research-and-create-a-lot-of-material-for-use-in/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [I don't want to fetishize the past. I want there to be a natural sequence coming out of a synthesis of the ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-don-t-want-to-fetishize-the-past-i-want-there-to-be-a-natural/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [I'm trying to make a primitive painting. I'm trying to summon the archaic. I want to enter into a primitive situation. This is my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-m-trying-to-make-a-primitive-painting-i-m-trying-to-summon-the/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [Design is meant to grab you and win you over. It is meant to function in a way so as to make life easier.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/design-is-meant-to-grab-you-and-win-you-over-it-is-meant-to-function/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [I'm very tolerant of other art and other artists. But what I truly appreciate, what I truly admire in contemporary art, is work that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-m-very-tolerant-of-other-art-and-other-artists-but-what-i-truly/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) > [I'm not so interested in this series of ruptures, where minimalism took over pop art, and then neo-expressionism was a triumph over that. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-m-not-so-interested-in-this-series-of-ruptures-where-minimalism/) [Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) [Explore all 18 Philip Taaffe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-taaffe/) ## 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. 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