--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You cannot hide any secret. If the artist…" description: "\"You cannot hide any secret. If the artist succor his flagging spirits by opium or wine, his work will characterize itself as the effect of opium or win..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/421/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_art_you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist_380119.jpg" --- # You cannot hide any secret. If the artist succor his… ![“You cannot hide any secret. If the artist succor his flagging spirits by opium or wine, his work will characterize itself as the effect of opium or wine. If you make a picture or a statue, it sets the beholder in that state of mind you had when you made it. If you spend for show, on building, or…” quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/421/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_art_you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist_380119.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/421/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_art_you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist_380119.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/421/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_art_you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist_380119.jpg) > “You cannot hide any secret. If the artist succor his flagging spirits by opium or wine, his work will characterize itself as the effect of opium or wine. If you make a picture or a statue, it sets the beholder in that state of mind you had when you made it. If you spend for show, on building, or gardening, or on pictures, or on equipages, it will so appear. We are all physiognomists and penetrators of character, and things themselves are detective.” [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. An artist’s medium influences how viewers perceive the work, reflecting the creator’s state of mind and revealing deeper character traits. **In simple terms:** Art shows the creator’s mindset and reveals character. Key Takeaway Recognize how personal influences shape creative output. Themes art psychology perception character creativity Mood contemplative inquisitive Type philosophical artistic When to use this quote - painting - sculpture - interior design - personal expression Key Concepts aesthetic theory psychological projection Questions to Reflect On - What does your favorite artwork say about its creator? - How do personal habits affect your creative process? A Different Perspective Interpretation can be subjective and may misrepresent intent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Beholder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beholder/) [Building](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/building/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Detectives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/detectives/) [Effect Opium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effect-opium-3449166/) [Effects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effects/) [Gardening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gardening/) [Hide Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hide-secret-3449165/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Made it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made-it/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Opium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opium/) [Secrecy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secrecy/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Secret Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret-artist-2182447/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Spirits Opium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirits-opium-3449167/) [State of mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/state-of-mind/) [States](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/states/) [Statues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/statues/) [Wine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wine/) ## Related quotes > [The secret for an artist is to make that a subject and not bang your head against the wall and give up. But to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-james/the-secret-for-an-artist-is-to-make-that-a-subject-and-not-bang-your/) [Clive James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-james/) > [“Her secret? It is every artist's secret--passion. That is all. It is an open secret, and perfectly safe. Like heroism, it is inimitable in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/her-secret-it-is-every-artist-s-secret-passion-that-is-all-it-is-an/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [There are many difficult things in this world to hide, but a secret is not one of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-many-difficult-things-in-this-world-to-hide-but-a-secret-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Hide your secret even from the closest friend; learn to be silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-van-beethoven/hide-your-secret-even-from-the-closest-friend-learn-to-be-silent/) [Ludwig van Beethoven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-van-beethoven/) > [Nobody can guard your secrets better than you, so do not blame anyone for revealing your secrets, for you could not hide them yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-p/nobody-can-guard-your-secrets-better-than-you-so-do-not-blame-anyone/) [I :P](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/i-p/) > [“There are many different things in this world to hide, but a secret is not one of them. It is difficult to hide an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemony-snicket/there-are-many-different-things-in-this-world-to-hide-but-a-secret-is/) [Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) > [“Rumi speaks of the Open Secret. He says that each one of us is trying to hide a secret—not a big bad secret, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/rumi-speaks-of-the-open-secret-he-says-that-each-one-of-us-is-trying/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [The spirit of the world, the great calm presence of the creator, comes not forth to the sorceries of opium or of wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-spirit-of-the-world-the-great-calm-presence-of-the-creator-comes/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [What a benefit would the American government, not yet relieved of its extreme need, render to itself, and to every city, village and hamlet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/what-a-benefit-would-the-american-government-not-yet-relieved-of-its/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Tobacco and opium have broad backs, and will cheerfully carry the load of armies, if you choose to make them pay high for such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/tobacco-and-opium-have-broad-backs-and-will-cheerfully-carry-the-load/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [What opium is instilled into all disaster? It shows formidable as we approach it, but there is at last no rough rasping friction,but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/what-opium-is-instilled-into-all-disaster-it-shows-formidable-as-we/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A healthy soul stands united with the Just and the True, as the magnet arranges itself with the pole, so that he stands to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-healthy-soul-stands-united-with-the-just-and-the-true-as-the-magnet/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Personal beauty is then first charming and itself, when it dissatisfies us with any end; when it becomes a story without an end; when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/personal-beauty-is-then-first-charming-and-itself-when-it/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Though we travel the world over to find beauty, we must carry it with us or we find it not . . . The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/though-we-travel-the-world-over-to-find-beauty-we-must-carry-it-with/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [But the mark of American merit in painting, in sculpture, in poetry, in fiction, in eloquence, seems to be a certain grace withoutgrandeur, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/but-the-mark-of-american-merit-in-painting-in-sculpture-in-poetry-in/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## More by Ralph Waldo Emerson > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If we will not interfere with our thought, but will act entirely, or see how the thing stands in God, we know the particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-we-will-not-interfere-with-our-thought-but-will-act-entirely-or/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Consideration is the soil in which wisdom may be expected to grow, and strength be given to every up-springing plant of duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/consideration-is-the-soil-in-which-wisdom-may-be-expected-to-grow-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“There is then creative reading as well as creative writing. When the mind is braced by labor and invention, the page of whatever book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/there-is-then-creative-reading-as-well-as-creative-writing-when-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The order of things consents to virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-order-of-things-consents-to-virtue/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Life only avails, not the having lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/life-only-avails-not-the-having-lived/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Another success is the post-office, with its educating energy augmented by cheapness and guarded by a certain religious sentimentin mankind; so that the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/another-success-is-the-post-office-with-its-educating-energy/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A child reminds us that playtime is an essential part of our daily routine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-child-reminds-us-that-playtime-is-an-essential-part-of-our-daily/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [No man can be criticised but by a greater than he. Do not, then, read the reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-man-can-be-criticised-but-by-a-greater-than-he-do-not-then-read/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/coal-lay-in-ledges-under-the-ground-since-the-flood-until-a-laborer/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I am; therefore, I had nothing better to do than to think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-am-therefore-i-had-nothing-better-to-do-than-to-think/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends, but they are imprisoned by an enchanter in these paper and leathern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-a-library-we-are-surrounded-by-many-hundreds-of-dear-friends-but/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The compensations of calamity are made apparent to the understanding also, after long intervals of time. A fever, a mutilation, a cruel disappointment, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-compensations-of-calamity-are-made-apparent-to-the-understanding/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) [Explore all 4,802 Ralph Waldo Emerson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "You cannot hide any secret. If the artist succor his flagging spirits by opium or wine, his work will characterize itself as the effect of opium or wine. If you make a picture or a statue, it sets the beholder in that state of mind you had when you made it. If you spend for show, on building, or gardening, or on pictures, or on equipages, it will so appear. We are all physiognomists and penetrators of character, and things themselves are detective.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ralph Waldo Emerson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist-succor-his-flagging-spirits/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist-succor-his-flagging-spirits/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/421/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_art_you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist_380119.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/421/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_art_you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist_380119.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/421/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_art_you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist_380119.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You cannot hide any secret. If the artist succor his flagging spirits by opium or wine, his work will…” — Ralph Waldo Emerson", "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": "Ralph Waldo Emerson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You cannot hide any secret. If...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist-succor-his-flagging-spirits/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/you-cannot-hide-any-secret-if-the-artist-succor-his-flagging-spirits/#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 } } ] } ```