--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The beautiful despair is never fruitless…" description: "\"The beautiful despair is never fruitless. It keeps you going. Like when I first heard Bob Dylan do 'Things Have Changed,' or any time I see any work of..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41b/rodney-crowell-3715_art_the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless_1005759.png" --- # The beautiful despair is never fruitless. It keeps you… ![“The beautiful despair is never fruitless. It keeps you going. Like when I first heard Bob Dylan do 'Things Have Changed,' or any time I see any work of art really beautifully done, like Michelangelo's 'The David' or that movie 'Lost in Translation' - it inspires me to try and find my own version…” quote by Rodney Crowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41b/rodney-crowell-3715_art_the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless_1005759.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41b/rodney-crowell-3715_art_the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless_1005759.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41b/rodney-crowell-3715_art_the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless_1005759.png) > “The beautiful despair is never fruitless. It keeps you going. Like when I first heard Bob Dylan do 'Things Have Changed,' or any time I see any work of art really beautifully done, like Michelangelo's 'The David' or that movie 'Lost in Translation' - it inspires me to try and find my own version of that.” [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. Art that moves us can ignite personal creativity, prompting us to seek our own expression. **In simple terms:** Great art inspires personal creation. Key Takeaway Let art motivate your own work. Themes inspiration art appreciation creativity Mood thoughtful inspired Type creative motivational When to use this quote - visiting galleries - watching films - listening to music - creating art Key Concepts aesthetic experience personal growth Questions to Reflect On - What piece of art has most inspired you? - How can you translate that inspiration into your own work? A Different Perspective Not all art resonates equally; inspiration can be fleeting. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Despair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despair/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [All I can say is that I did admire 'The Lives of Others', which I thought was really about something and beautifully done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-pinter/all-i-can-say-is-that-i-did-admire-the-lives-of-others-which-i/) [Harold Pinter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-pinter/) > [I find often in Hollywood there are many people who play themselves really beautifully. And certain parts are not that dissimilar from who you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-gugino/i-find-often-in-hollywood-there-are-many-people-who-play-themselves/) [Carla Gugino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-gugino/) > [“I'm trying to get as far way from myself as I can….from Things Have Changed by Bob Dylan (not a book but ….)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-m-trying-to-get-as-far-way-from-myself-as-i-can-from-things-have/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Townes Van Zandt ranks alongside Kris Kristofferson and Bob Dylan. He inspired so many songwriters to shoot for something that's timeless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/townes-van-zandt-ranks-alongside-kris-kristofferson-and-bob-dylan-he/) [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/) > [Things have changed very much, several times, since I grew up, and, like everyone in New York except the intellectuals, I have led several…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renata-adler/things-have-changed-very-much-several-times-since-i-grew-up-and-like/) [Renata Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renata-adler/) > [I'm happy to work. I know things have changed recently, but I tend to prefer film. I don't know what it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-jones/i-m-happy-to-work-i-know-things-have-changed-recently-but-i-tend-to/) [Evan Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-jones/) > [Sometimes I wonder what if this would have been different with us. What if we didnt live so far? what if we hadnt of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-i-wonder-what-if-this-would-have-been-different-with-us/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I like to think that I've grown as an actor and things have changed, and I think so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maika-monroe/i-like-to-think-that-i-ve-grown-as-an-actor-and-things-have-changed/) [Maika Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maika-monroe/) > [“..I began speaking.. First, I took issue with the media's characterization of the post-Katrina New Orleans as resembling the third world as its poor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-sothern/i-began-speaking-first-i-took-issue-with-the-media-s-characterization/) [Billy Sothern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-sothern/) > [We now know how things were in the '60s and how things have changed, but I don't think we appreciate how much things have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karine-vanasse/we-now-know-how-things-were-in-the-60s-and-how-things-have-changed/) [Karine Vanasse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karine-vanasse/) > [A lot of things have changed in my life and for the best. I'm really happy about it. I'm just blessed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samir-nasri/a-lot-of-things-have-changed-in-my-life-and-for-the-best-i-m-really/) [Samir Nasri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samir-nasri/) > [Sometimes the littlest thing in life changes something forever and there will be times when you wish you can go back to how things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu/sometimes-the-littlest-thing-in-life-changes-something-forever-and/) [Ritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu/) > [Thankfully 'Uyir' happened. Things have changed for good since then.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sangeetha-krish/thankfully-uyir-happened-things-have-changed-for-good-since-then/) [Sangeetha Krish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sangeetha-krish/) > [Everything has changed and nothing has changed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-lowery/everything-has-changed-and-nothing-has-changed/) [Joseph Lowery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-lowery/) ## 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 > [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": "The beautiful despair is never fruitless. It keeps you going. Like when I first heard Bob Dylan do 'Things Have Changed,' or any time I see any work of art really beautifully done, like Michelangelo's 'The David' or that movie 'Lost in Translation' - it inspires me to try and find my own version of that.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rodney Crowell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless-it-keeps-you-going-like-when/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless-it-keeps-you-going-like-when/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41b/rodney-crowell-3715_art_the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless_1005759.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41b/rodney-crowell-3715_art_the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless_1005759.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41b/rodney-crowell-3715_art_the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless_1005759.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The beautiful despair is never fruitless. It keeps you going. Like when I first heard Bob Dylan do 'Things…” — 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": "The beautiful despair is never fruitless....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless-it-keeps-you-going-like-when/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-crowell/the-beautiful-despair-is-never-fruitless-it-keeps-you-going-like-when/#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 } } ] } ```