--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What excites me and what I find most…" description: "\"What excites me and what I find most compelling is clearly not what excites other artists. It comes from my own idiosyncratic background and what I'm d..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/philip-taaffe-29864_art_what-excites-me-and-what-i-find-most-com_139723.jpg" --- # What excites me and what I find most compelling is clearly… ![“What excites me and what I find most compelling is clearly not what excites other artists. It comes from my own idiosyncratic background and what I'm drawn to. Maybe this is a result of having lived in Naples during a formative period of time. I'm interested in telling a unique story in a very…” quote by Philip Taaffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/philip-taaffe-29864_art_what-excites-me-and-what-i-find-most-com_139723.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/philip-taaffe-29864_art_what-excites-me-and-what-i-find-most-com_139723.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f98/philip-taaffe-29864_art_what-excites-me-and-what-i-find-most-com_139723.jpg) > “What excites me and what I find most compelling is clearly not what excites other artists. It comes from my own idiosyncratic background and what I'm drawn to. Maybe this is a result of having lived in Naples during a formative period of time. I'm interested in telling a unique story in a very intense way.” [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. The speaker emphasizes that personal inspiration stems from unique background and experiences, not from mainstream trends. **In simple terms:** Personal history drives unique creative drive. Key Takeaway Draw on your own story for authentic art. Themes creativity individuality culture Mood introspective confident Type artistic inspirational When to use this quote - artistic projects - storytelling - cultural exploration Key Concepts authenticity self‑expression Questions to Reflect On - How does your upbringing shape your work? - What unique perspective can you share? A Different Perspective Uniqueness can limit broader appeal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Intense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intense/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [I'm still very interested in telling one-of-a-kind women's stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-koppel/i-m-still-very-interested-in-telling-one-of-a-kind-women-s-stories/) [Lily Koppel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-koppel/) > [Magicians will always tell you the trick is the most important thing, but Im more interested in telling a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-tempest/magicians-will-always-tell-you-the-trick-is-the-most-important-thing/) [Marco Tempest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-tempest/) > [You know, I'm really not interested in someone telling me that something's good or bad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-malkovich/you-know-i-m-really-not-interested-in-someone-telling-me-that/) [John Malkovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-malkovich/) > [I'm not very interested in telling the facts. I have a lot of investment in telling the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/i-m-not-very-interested-in-telling-the-facts-i-have-a-lot-of/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [I'm not first and foremost interested in story and the what-happens, but I'm interested in who's telling it and how they're telling it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/i-m-not-first-and-foremost-interested-in-story-and-the-what-happens/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [These are the kinds of stories I'm really interested in telling: bad stories about bad people, I'm comfortable with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-azzarello/these-are-the-kinds-of-stories-i-m-really-interested-in-telling-bad/) [Brian Azzarello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-azzarello/) > [I am not interested in telling you what to think. My job is to show you what I think. Period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-mcquarrie/i-am-not-interested-in-telling-you-what-to-think-my-job-is-to-show/) [Christopher McQuarrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-mcquarrie/) > [Sometimes I've made mistakes and not really listened to my instincts, and I've done a project, and I've been disappointed with the consequence, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-lawther/sometimes-i-ve-made-mistakes-and-not-really-listened-to-my-instincts/) [Alex Lawther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-lawther/) > [I'm not interested in telling a story in my photographic work. I'm more interested in freezing certain moments in time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-simmons/i-m-not-interested-in-telling-a-story-in-my-photographic-work-i-m/) [Laurie Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-simmons/) > [I wanted to tell a story that interested me as much in the telling as in the watching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-labute/i-wanted-to-tell-a-story-that-interested-me-as-much-in-the-telling-as/) [Neil LaBute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-labute/) > [I am interested in telling my particular truth as I have seen it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwendolyn-brooks/i-am-interested-in-telling-my-particular-truth-as-i-have-seen-it/) [Gwendolyn Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwendolyn-brooks/) > [I'm interested in telling stories that add up to more than the entertainment of the story. That's what does it for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bennett-miller/i-m-interested-in-telling-stories-that-add-up-to-more-than-the/) [Bennett Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bennett-miller/) > [I am not interested only in telling a story, but I want to tell it my way. I don't want my accent, my temperament,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haile-gerima/i-am-not-interested-only-in-telling-a-story-but-i-want-to-tell-it-my/) [Haile Gerima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haile-gerima/) > [I'm not interested in breaking news. I'm interested in telling the story of what's going on and then trying to figure it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-beck/i-m-not-interested-in-breaking-news-i-m-interested-in-telling-the/) [Glenn Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-beck/) > [I'm interested in telling stories about characters that are interesting and who are challenging in some way, one that will make you think about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/i-m-interested-in-telling-stories-about-characters-that-are/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) ## More by Philip Taaffe > [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-taaffe/i-m-not-so-interested-in-the-effort-that-it-takes-to-have-a-self/) [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 Art quotes > [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/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [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/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“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 > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [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 only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [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/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What excites me and what I find most compelling is clearly not what excites other artists. 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