--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's a gift that we get to do the work…" description: "\"It's a gift that we get to do the work that we do to call ourselves artists.\" — Rodney Crowell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/rodney-crowell-3715_art_it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-t_2027947.png" --- # It's a gift that we get to do the work that we do to call… ![“It's a gift that we get to do the work that we do to call ourselves artists.” quote by Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/rodney-crowell-3715_art_it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-t_2027947.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/rodney-crowell-3715_art_it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-t_2027947.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/rodney-crowell-3715_art_it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-t_2027947.png) > “It's a gift that we get to do the work that we do to call ourselves artists.” [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists view their work as a privilege, feeling honored to create and identify as creators. **In simple terms:** Being an artist is a gift. Key Takeaway Value your creative work. Themes creativity gratitude identity Mood proud grateful Type inspirational reflective When to use this quote - painting - writing - music performance Key Concepts artistic purpose self-expression Questions to Reflect On - What does being an artist mean to you? - How do you honor your craft? A Different Perspective Creative work can be financially insecure. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Artists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artists/) [Get](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/get/) [Gift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gift/) [Gift Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gift-work-3709321/) [Ourselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ourselves/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Work Artists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-artists-343372/) ## Related quotes > [I can't let the baggage of my private life get into work. Artists are more fragile than normal people. But I know that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bipasha-basu/i-can-t-let-the-baggage-of-my-private-life-get-into-work-artists-are/) [Bipasha Basu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bipasha-basu/) > [I like to work with artists who are as wide in their musical taste as I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-like-to-work-with-artists-who-are-as-wide-in-their-musical-taste-as/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work.” —ÉMILE ZOLA”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-eikleberry/the-artist-is-nothing-without-the-gift-but-the-gift-is-nothing-2/) [Carol Eikleberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-eikleberry/) > [Some people are born with the necessary gift, and some work hard to build on the few gifts they have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-garrett/some-people-are-born-with-the-necessary-gift-and-some-work-hard-to/) [Peter Garrett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-garrett/) > [The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mile-zola/the-artist-is-nothing-without-the-gift-but-the-gift-is-nothing/) [Emile Zola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mile-zola/) > [It's a real gift to work with my sister. We obviously have such a shorthand communicating with each other that it makes the process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-todd/it-s-a-real-gift-to-work-with-my-sister-we-obviously-have-such-a/) [Jennifer Todd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-todd/) > [Anything that had to do with art I been doing all my life. It was a gift. It's nothing I work real hard at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erykah-badu/anything-that-had-to-do-with-art-i-been-doing-all-my-life-it-was-a/) [Erykah Badu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erykah-badu/) > [“The art is nothing without the gift. But the gift is nothing without work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-art-is-nothing-without-the-gift-but-the-gift-is-nothing-without/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I started off just trying to make a wish list for myself. I wanted to work with people I really admire myself. I wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiesto/i-started-off-just-trying-to-make-a-wish-list-for-myself-i-wanted-to/) [Tiesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiesto/) > [I don't see myself as an artist. I work with artists and collaborate with them, but then it becomes graphic design. It's not an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaughan-oliver/i-don-t-see-myself-as-an-artist-i-work-with-artists-and-collaborate/) [Vaughan Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaughan-oliver/) > [To me, if there is any sort of value added to the accumulation of knowledge over time, then the work of artists should be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-james-marshall/to-me-if-there-is-any-sort-of-value-added-to-the-accumulation-of/) [Kerry James Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-james-marshall/) > [I've been fortunate to work with artists that are at the top of their respective genres. That allowed me to learn from them and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-sean/i-ve-been-fortunate-to-work-with-artists-that-are-at-the-top-of-their/) [Jay Sean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-sean/) > [Labels need to work with artists to help them achieve their best work, not to jam records out that are half-baked or three-quarters baked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-iovine/labels-need-to-work-with-artists-to-help-them-achieve-their-best-work/) [Jimmy Iovine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-iovine/) > [The work of artists is to find what's humanly possible - possibility's furthest reaches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-kushner/the-work-of-artists-is-to-find-what-s-humanly-possible-possibility-s/) [Tony Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-kushner/) > [I like to work with artists from around the world. There are so many new inspiring filmmakers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelina-jolie/i-like-to-work-with-artists-from-around-the-world-there-are-so-many/) [Angelina Jolie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelina-jolie/) ## More by Rodney Crowell > [For me, my career has never been about what I've done. But it's been about becoming, achieving, and pushing myself further.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/for-me-my-career-has-never-been-about-what-i-ve-done-but-it-s-been/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [There are certain choices you make as a songwriter, based on vowel sounds and melody and chord changes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/there-are-certain-choices-you-make-as-a-songwriter-based-on-vowel/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [I've had a nice career. I'm no David Bowie or Bruce Springsteen out there. I'm not an icon. I'm just a working artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/i-ve-had-a-nice-career-i-m-no-david-bowie-or-bruce-springsteen-out/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [My father took me to see Hank Williams on December 14th, 1952. I was two years and four months of age. And I remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/my-father-took-me-to-see-hank-williams-on-december-14th-1952-i-was/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [Because of my methodology and my sensibilities to write songs, I'm not very comfortable with the notion to rush in any creative endeavor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/because-of-my-methodology-and-my-sensibilities-to-write-songs-i-m-not/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [When I was 12 years old, or however old I was when Bringing It All Back Home came out, I'd just skip back and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/when-i-was-12-years-old-or-however-old-i-was-when-bringing-it-all/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [Invariably, collaboration leads to new forms of self-expression and to the things that move you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/invariably-collaboration-leads-to-new-forms-of-self-expression-and-to/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [I think, back in the '80s when I was having hits all the time, I took it for granted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/i-think-back-in-the-80s-when-i-was-having-hits-all-the-time-i-took-it/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [Singing duets is instinctive, intuitive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/singing-duets-is-instinctive-intuitive/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [I've often said to young songwriters when they want to write with me, 'Let's take a stab at ten songs, and we might get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/i-ve-often-said-to-young-songwriters-when-they-want-to-write-with-me/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [So much of inspiration comes from collaboration with other musicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/so-much-of-inspiration-comes-from-collaboration-with-other-musicians/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [For the most part, this record is autobiographical. At some point, the story of 'The Houston Kid' takes my experiences from 6 to 15…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/for-the-most-part-this-record-is-autobiographical-at-some-point-the/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [I cannot say I'm a poet. That's for someone when they take in consideration where they can bestow 'poet' on. I can't do it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/i-cannot-say-i-m-a-poet-that-s-for-someone-when-they-take-in/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [Pain comes like the weather, but joy is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/pain-comes-like-the-weather-but-joy-is-a-choice/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) > [When I go back to seek inspiration - whether it be from Chuck Berry, Howlin' Wolf, the Beatles, Hank Williams, Ray Charles or Bob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/when-i-go-back-to-seek-inspiration-whether-it-be-from-chuck-berry/) [Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) [Explore all 123 Rodney Crowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/) ## 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": "It's a gift that we get to do the work that we do to call ourselves artists.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rodney Crowell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-that-we-do-to-call-ourselves/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-that-we-do-to-call-ourselves/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/rodney-crowell-3715_art_it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-t_2027947.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/rodney-crowell-3715_art_it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-t_2027947.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08d/rodney-crowell-3715_art_it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-t_2027947.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's a gift that we get to do the work that we do to call ourselves artists.” — Rodney Crowell", "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": "Rodney Crowell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-crowell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's a gift that we get...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-that-we-do-to-call-ourselves/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/it-s-a-gift-that-we-get-to-do-the-work-that-we-do-to-call-ourselves/#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 } } ] } ```