--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Although the art world reveres the…" description: "\"“Although the art world reveres the unconventional, it is rife with conformity. Artists make work that \"looks like art\" and behave in ways that enhance..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22f/sarah-thornton-45145_art_although-the-art-world-reveres-the-uncon_2712949.jpg" --- # Although the art world reveres the unconventional, it is… ![“Although the art world reveres the unconventional, it is rife with conformity. Artists make work that "looks like art" and behave in ways that enhance stereotypes. Curators pander to the expectations of their peers and their museum boards. Collectors run in herds to buy work by a handful of…” quote by Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22f/sarah-thornton-45145_art_although-the-art-world-reveres-the-uncon_2712949.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22f/sarah-thornton-45145_art_although-the-art-world-reveres-the-uncon_2712949.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/22f/sarah-thornton-45145_art_although-the-art-world-reveres-the-uncon_2712949.jpg) > ““Although the art world reveres the unconventional, it is rife with conformity. Artists make work that "looks like art" and behave in ways that enhance stereotypes. Curators pander to the expectations of their peers and their museum boards. Collectors run in herds to buy work by a handful of fashionable painters. Critics stick their finger in the air to see which way the wind is blowing so as to "get it right". Originality is not always rewarded, but some people take real risks and innovate, which gives a raison d'être to the rest.”” [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The art market claims to value the unconventional, yet conformity dominates through trends and collective behavior. **In simple terms:** Art world pretends to cherish novelty but often follows trends. Key Takeaway Challenge norms and support true innovation. Themes art conformity innovation culture Mood critical analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - gallery curation - artist development - collector education - critical writing Key Concepts social dynamics market forces authenticity Questions to Reflect On - What incentives drive conformity? - How can institutions foster genuine originality? A Different Perspective Risk of alienating mainstream audiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Behave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-behave-2822709/) [Art world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-world/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Artists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artists/) [Conformity Artists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conformity-artists-2822710/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Originality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/originality/) [Painters Critics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painters-critics-2822711/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Raison d'etre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raison-d-etre/) [Stereotypes Curators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stereotypes-curators-2822712/) ## Related quotes > [Despite its self-regard, and much like a society of devout followers, the art world relies on consensus as heavily as it depends on individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/despite-its-self-regard-and-much-like-a-society-of-devout-followers/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [(...) contemporary art has become a kind of alternative religion for atheists. 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It was then that the "passion to know," which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-novel-has-accompanied-man-uninterruptedly-and-faithfully-since/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Government and state can never be perfect because they owe their raison d'être to the imperfection of man and can attain their end, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/government-and-state-can-never-be-perfect-because-they-owe-their/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [“The personal checks and balances that most of us bring to bear when we are employed in other activities - we ask ourselves if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghuram-g-rajan/the-personal-checks-and-balances-that-most-of-us-bring-to-bear-when/) [Raghuram G. Rajan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghuram-g-rajan/) > [Men forget that a value judgment has a raison d'être only as a preparation for an action and a meaning solely in relation to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/men-forget-that-a-value-judgment-has-a-raison-d-tre-only-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Sarah Thornton > [“Art needs motives that are more profound than profit if it is to maintain its difference from—and position above—other cultural forms.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/art-needs-motives-that-are-more-profound-than-profit-if-it-is-to/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [Many outsiders see the art world as elitist and it is, except it is also oddly down-to-earth and embracing of oddballs who don't fit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/many-outsiders-see-the-art-world-as-elitist-and-it-is-except-it-is/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [“Our lives are constantly changing. Different things become relevant at different times in our lives. We are motivated by our changing sensibilities. Why can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/our-lives-are-constantly-changing-different-things-become-relevant-at/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [“Their hatred is so passionate that I can't help but wonder if they're attracted to each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/their-hatred-is-so-passionate-that-i-can-t-help-but-wonder-if-they-re/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [“I'm an atheist, but I believe in art. I go to galleries like my mother went to church. It helps me understand the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/i-m-an-atheist-but-i-believe-in-art-i-go-to-galleries-like-my-mother/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [(...) contemporary art has become a kind of alternative religion for atheists. (...) For many art world insiders and art aficionados of other kinds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/contemporary-art-has-become-a-kind-of-alternative-religion-for/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [The term bohemian has a bad reputation because it's allied to myriad clichés, but Parisians originally adopted the term, associated with nomadic Gypsies, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/the-term-bohemian-has-a-bad-reputation-because-it-s-allied-to-myriad/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [Despite its self-regard, and much like a society of devout followers, the art world relies on consensus as heavily as it depends on individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/despite-its-self-regard-and-much-like-a-society-of-devout-followers/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) [Explore all 9 Sarah Thornton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) ## 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. 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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": "“Although the art world reveres the unconventional, it is rife with conformity. 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