---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I separate cartooning, which is fun and…"
description: "\"I separate cartooning, which is fun and wacky and soulful, from illustration, which is very well-drawn and extremely uptight to look at. There's a diff..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/698/ralph-bakshi-15677_cartooning_i-separate-cartooning-which-is-fun-and-w_206927.jpg"
---

#  I separate cartooning, which is fun and wacky and soulful…

![“I separate cartooning, which is fun and wacky and soulful, from illustration, which is very well-drawn and extremely uptight to look at. There's a difference. I'm a cartoonist.” quote by Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/698/ralph-bakshi-15677_cartooning_i-separate-cartooning-which-is-fun-and-w_206927.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/698/ralph-bakshi-15677_cartooning_i-separate-cartooning-which-is-fun-and-w_206927.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/698/ralph-bakshi-15677_cartooning_i-separate-cartooning-which-is-fun-and-w_206927.jpg)

> “I separate cartooning, which is fun and wacky and soulful, from illustration, which is very well-drawn and extremely uptight to look at. There's a difference. I'm a cartoonist.”

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Cartooning embraces playful, expressive freedom, while illustration demands technical precision and formal restraint.

**In simple terms:** Cartooning is free; illustration is precise.

Key Takeaway

Choose the style that matches your creative intent.

Themes

art style creativity

Mood

playful analytical

Type

creative educational

When to use this quote

- comic creation
- storyboarding
- graphic design
- advertising art

Key Concepts

cartooning illustration expression technique

Questions to Reflect On

- When should you blend cartooning with illustration?
- How does audience expectation shape your style choice?

A Different Perspective

Rigid illustration can stifle spontaneity; cartooning may lack polish for certain projects.

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[Cartooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cartooning/) [Comic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic/) [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun/) [Soulful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soulful/)

## Related quotes

> [The art of cartooning is vulgarity. The only reason for cartooning to exist is to be on the edge. If you only take apart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/the-art-of-cartooning-is-vulgarity-the-only-reason-for-cartooning-to/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [Cartooning at its best is a fine art. I'm a cartoonist who works in the medium of animation, which also allows me to paint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/cartooning-at-its-best-is-a-fine-art-i-m-a-cartoonist-who-works-in/)

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> [I hope to actually get back to painting someday... soon. I sort of transitioned into cartooning from painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-cannon/i-hope-to-actually-get-back-to-painting-someday-soon-i-sort-of/)

[Max Cannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-cannon/)

> [I did freelance cartooning off and on from college graduation in 1991 through ABC News hiring me in 2003. I did a weekly comic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-tapper/i-did-freelance-cartooning-off-and-on-from-college-graduation-in-1991/)

[Jake Tapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-tapper/)

> [My future plans are hazy, and I've yet to experience how much cartooning is in my blood and therefore how much I'll miss it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-larson/my-future-plans-are-hazy-and-i-ve-yet-to-experience-how-much/)

[Gary Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-larson/)

> [Cartooning will destroy you; it will break your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-schulz/cartooning-will-destroy-you-it-will-break-your-heart/)

[Charles M. Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-schulz/)

> [I'm really interested in making a mark on a paper and letting that be cursive shorthand for an idea - that's the origin of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-thompson/i-m-really-interested-in-making-a-mark-on-a-paper-and-letting-that-be/)

[Craig Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-thompson/)

> [Fortunately, cartooning is not a job. It's something like eating or sleeping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/fortunately-cartooning-is-not-a-job-it-s-something-like-eating-or/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [I have a personal definition of cartooning, which is, simply, "imaginative drawing." Anything you're drawing that is not in front of you but is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-woodring/i-have-a-personal-definition-of-cartooning-which-is-simply/)

[Jim Woodring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-woodring/)

> [“And to celebrate I will create a series of masterpieces showing how wrong-headed and primitive you and your ideologies are, and it is this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-to-celebrate-i-will-create-a-series-of-masterpieces-showing-how/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I was writing and cartooning and writing short stories from grade school on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-hefner/i-was-writing-and-cartooning-and-writing-short-stories-from-grade/)

[Hugh Hefner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-hefner/)

> [I haven't really lost faith in my work - other than for quite short periods when the work is harder than usual - but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-abel/i-haven-t-really-lost-faith-in-my-work-other-than-for-quite-short/)

[Jessica Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-abel/)

> [Cartooning is for people who can't quite draw and can't quite write. You combine the two half-talents and come up with a career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-groening/cartooning-is-for-people-who-can-t-quite-draw-and-can-t-quite-write/)

[Matt Groening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-groening/)

> [People go into cartooning because they're shy and they're angry. That's when you're sitting in the back of a classroom drawing the teacher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-groening/people-go-into-cartooning-because-they-re-shy-and-they-re-angry-that/)

[Matt Groening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-groening/)

> [In middle school, I started to draw, and my pencil sketches were huge. They were these 4ft by 3ft drawings, and I got a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/in-middle-school-i-started-to-draw-and-my-pencil-sketches-were-huge/)

[Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/)

## More by Ralph Bakshi

> [Sweetheart, I'm the biggest ripped-off cartoonist in the history of the world, and that's all I'm going to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/sweetheart-i-m-the-biggest-ripped-off-cartoonist-in-the-history-of/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [As an artist, I want to interpret my feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/as-an-artist-i-want-to-interpret-my-feelings/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [Too many of Disney animators, and a lot try to emulate Disney, are trying to hit what they call quality levels. They're boring mannerisms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/too-many-of-disney-animators-and-a-lot-try-to-emulate-disney-are/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [What's most important in animation is the emotions and the ideas being portrayed. I'm a great believer of energy and emotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/what-s-most-important-in-animation-is-the-emotions-and-the-ideas/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [Animation is tremendously resilient. Animation will recover, as art always recovers. There's always cycles of good art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/animation-is-tremendously-resilient-animation-will-recover-as-art/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [I draw what I feel, which is no more than doing my job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/i-draw-what-i-feel-which-is-no-more-than-doing-my-job/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [ John \[Kricfalusi\] is so arrogant. He thinks he's me! ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/john-kricfalusi-is-so-arrogant-he-thinks-he-s-me/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [I animated 20 years at Terry Toons. It's important to know that animators like pizza and a raise once in a while, and you've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/i-animated-20-years-at-terry-toons-it-s-important-to-know-that/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [I am not interested in slickness for the sake of slickness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/i-am-not-interested-in-slickness-for-the-sake-of-slickness/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [Someone's been mean to you! Tell me who it is, so I can punch him tastefully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/someone-s-been-mean-to-you-tell-me-who-it-is-so-i-can-punch-him/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [Cartooning at its best is a fine art. I'm a cartoonist who works in the medium of animation, which also allows me to paint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/cartooning-at-its-best-is-a-fine-art-i-m-a-cartoonist-who-works-in/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [My good films were independent and my bad films were not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/my-good-films-were-independent-and-my-bad-films-were-not/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [As an artist, I want to interpret my feelings - not run across the street and ask what my mother thinks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/as-an-artist-i-want-to-interpret-my-feelings-not-run-across-the/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [My movies continue to be found and be sold because there's something going on in them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/my-movies-continue-to-be-found-and-be-sold-because-there-s-something/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

> [The art of cartooning is vulgarity. The only reason for cartooning to exist is to be on the edge. If you only take apart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-bakshi/the-art-of-cartooning-is-vulgarity-the-only-reason-for-cartooning-to/)

[Ralph Bakshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

[Explore all 42 Ralph Bakshi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-bakshi/)

## More Cartooning quotes

> [In middle school, I started to draw, and my pencil sketches were huge. They were these 4ft by 3ft drawings, and I got a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/in-middle-school-i-started-to-draw-and-my-pencil-sketches-were-huge/)

[Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/)

> [People go into cartooning because they're shy and they're angry. That's when you're sitting in the back of a classroom drawing the teacher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-groening/people-go-into-cartooning-because-they-re-shy-and-they-re-angry-that/)

[Matt Groening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-groening/)

> [Cartooning is for people who can't quite draw and can't quite write. You combine the two half-talents and come up with a career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-groening/cartooning-is-for-people-who-can-t-quite-draw-and-can-t-quite-write/)

[Matt Groening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-groening/)

> [I haven't really lost faith in my work - other than for quite short periods when the work is harder than usual - but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-abel/i-haven-t-really-lost-faith-in-my-work-other-than-for-quite-short/)

[Jessica Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-abel/)

> [I was writing and cartooning and writing short stories from grade school on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-hefner/i-was-writing-and-cartooning-and-writing-short-stories-from-grade/)

[Hugh Hefner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-hefner/)

> [“And to celebrate I will create a series of masterpieces showing how wrong-headed and primitive you and your ideologies are, and it is this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-to-celebrate-i-will-create-a-series-of-masterpieces-showing-how/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I have a personal definition of cartooning, which is, simply, "imaginative drawing." Anything you're drawing that is not in front of you but is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-woodring/i-have-a-personal-definition-of-cartooning-which-is-simply/)

[Jim Woodring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-woodring/)

> [Fortunately, cartooning is not a job. It's something like eating or sleeping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-aragones/fortunately-cartooning-is-not-a-job-it-s-something-like-eating-or/)

[Sergio Aragones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-aragones/)

> [I'm really interested in making a mark on a paper and letting that be cursive shorthand for an idea - that's the origin of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-thompson/i-m-really-interested-in-making-a-mark-on-a-paper-and-letting-that-be/)

[Craig Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-thompson/)

> [Cartooning will destroy you; it will break your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-schulz/cartooning-will-destroy-you-it-will-break-your-heart/)

[Charles M. Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-schulz/)

> [My future plans are hazy, and I've yet to experience how much cartooning is in my blood and therefore how much I'll miss it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-larson/my-future-plans-are-hazy-and-i-ve-yet-to-experience-how-much/)

[Gary Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-larson/)

> [I did freelance cartooning off and on from college graduation in 1991 through ABC News hiring me in 2003. I did a weekly comic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-tapper/i-did-freelance-cartooning-off-and-on-from-college-graduation-in-1991/)

[Jake Tapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-tapper/)

> [I hope to actually get back to painting someday... soon. I sort of transitioned into cartooning from painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-cannon/i-hope-to-actually-get-back-to-painting-someday-soon-i-sort-of/)

[Max Cannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-cannon/)

> [It's a reality of art that the fewer lines you get, the harder it is. Cartooning is actually harder than realism. You have less…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-vernon/it-s-a-reality-of-art-that-the-fewer-lines-you-get-the-harder-it-is/)

[Ursula Vernon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-vernon/)

> [I think cartooning gets at, and re-creates on the page, some sixth sense ... in a way no other medium can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/i-think-cartooning-gets-at-and-re-creates-on-the-page-some-sixth/)

[Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/)

[Browse all 56 Cartooning quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cartooning/)

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