--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I got into art school, I thought it…" description: "\"When I got into art school, I thought it was paradise. I wanted to be an artist so much that I was really driven and nothing could stop me.\" — Sean Scully" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/269/sean-scully-20155_art_when-i-got-into-art-school-i-thought-it_1136751.jpg" --- # When I got into art school, I thought it was paradise. I… ![“When I got into art school, I thought it was paradise. I wanted to be an artist so much that I was really driven and nothing could stop me.” quote by Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/269/sean-scully-20155_art_when-i-got-into-art-school-i-thought-it_1136751.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/269/sean-scully-20155_art_when-i-got-into-art-school-i-thought-it_1136751.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/269/sean-scully-20155_art_when-i-got-into-art-school-i-thought-it_1136751.jpg) > “When I got into art school, I thought it was paradise. I wanted to be an artist so much that I was really driven and nothing could stop me.” [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Idealistic view of art school as perfect, driven by passion, believing nothing could hinder creativity **In simple terms:** Seeing art school as a flawless haven fueled by strong desire Key Takeaway Recognize passion but stay realistic Themes art passion idealism Mood hopeful determined Type motivational reflective When to use this quote - college enrollment - first art project - career planning Key Concepts creative drive naiveté Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards can balance enthusiasm with realism? - How to handle setbacks when expectations are high? A Different Perspective Passion may blind to challenges and practical limits ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-school/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Driven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/driven/) [Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothing/) [Paradise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paradise/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) ## Related quotes > [I had always thought of Paradise / In form and image as a library.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-had-always-thought-of-paradise-in-form-and-image-as-a-library/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [“Latifah says don't stress too much though. She says if I'm patient, inshaaAllah, we'll all be together in Jannah. I laughed when she said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umm-zakiyyah/latifah-says-don-t-stress-too-much-though-she-says-if-i-m-patient/) Umm Zakiyyah > [“They were given paradise, they wanted freedom, and stole fire from heaven, though they knew that they would become unhappy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/they-were-given-paradise-they-wanted-freedom-and-stole-fire-from/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [I left 'Death in Paradise' because I wanted to get back on stage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-john-jules/i-left-death-in-paradise-because-i-wanted-to-get-back-on-stage/) [Danny John-Jules](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-john-jules/) > [The most successful achievers in sports are people that are really driven and have that spirit of hunger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rei-kawakubo/the-most-successful-achievers-in-sports-are-people-that-are-really/) [Rei Kawakubo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rei-kawakubo/) > [If you're really driven and you want something deep, hard enough in life, you're going to get it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/if-you-re-really-driven-and-you-want-something-deep-hard-enough-in/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [I work constantly, I'm really driven by money, I'm really interested in money. It is not like I am rich by other star's standards,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-griffin/i-work-constantly-i-m-really-driven-by-money-i-m-really-interested-in/) [Kathy Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-griffin/) > [I am really driven, but my drive doesn't effect the conversations I have in my head about life, and my worries and fears and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/i-am-really-driven-but-my-drive-doesn-t-effect-the-conversations-i/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [I am really driven, but my drive doesn't affect the conversations I have in my head about life, and worries and fears and insecurities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/i-am-really-driven-but-my-drive-doesn-t-affect-the-conversations-i/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [I would walk down the hall with my guitar and play for anyone that would listen. As a young kid I was really driven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teena-marie/i-would-walk-down-the-hall-with-my-guitar-and-play-for-anyone-that/) [Teena Marie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teena-marie/) > [When I've done gymnastics, ballet or soccer - I was always trying to be the best. I'm really driven. Really driven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chloe-grace-moretz/when-i-ve-done-gymnastics-ballet-or-soccer-i-was-always-trying-to-be/) [Chloe Grace Moretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chloe-grace-moretz/) > [I knew I wanted to act, and I was really driven, so I kept going for it. We moved to L.A. full-time when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-duff/i-knew-i-wanted-to-act-and-i-was-really-driven-so-i-kept-going-for-it/) [Hilary Duff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-duff/) > [When I was a young kid at art school, I loved the sensual geometry of Poliakoff, which, of course, is inherent in my own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/when-i-was-a-young-kid-at-art-school-i-loved-the-sensual-geometry-of/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [As much as I enjoy traveling and playing on stage as an artist, I really find my true sense of purpose in a room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-hunt/as-much-as-i-enjoy-traveling-and-playing-on-stage-as-an-artist-i/) [Sam Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-hunt/) > [I don't think I'm a country artist, really. I'm a country person, but I don't think I'm necessarily a country singer or musician.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-isbell/i-don-t-think-i-m-a-country-artist-really-i-m-a-country-person-but-i/) [Jason Isbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-isbell/) ## More by Sean Scully > [I probably use more grays than any other artist in the history of art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/i-probably-use-more-grays-than-any-other-artist-in-the-history-of-art/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [I was always artistic - right from childhood - but my love of painting came a bit later. It followed my love of music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/i-was-always-artistic-right-from-childhood-but-my-love-of-painting/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [My job is to return abstraction to the people: in a sense, to popularize it without lowering the bar, which is a lot easier…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/my-job-is-to-return-abstraction-to-the-people-in-a-sense-to/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [My childhood was extremely unhappy. That's not to say that my parents didn't love me. But it was traumatic, and of course, art doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/my-childhood-was-extremely-unhappy-that-s-not-to-say-that-my-parents/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [I do believe abstraction is and was meant to embody deep emotion. I believe that's its job, in the history of art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/i-do-believe-abstraction-is-and-was-meant-to-embody-deep-emotion-i/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [I was doing an interview with a curator, and he asked me to sum up art in one word. Before he even finished asking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/i-was-doing-an-interview-with-a-curator-and-he-asked-me-to-sum-up-art/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [I was the only one to go to university, and the last thing my dad wanted was for me to be an artist. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/i-was-the-only-one-to-go-to-university-and-the-last-thing-my-dad/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [My work is very serious, and I use a lot of black, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/my-work-is-very-serious-and-i-use-a-lot-of-black-too/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [After my son died, I went to a psychiatrist. He proved - or I proved - that Sigmund Freud was correct when he said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/after-my-son-died-i-went-to-a-psychiatrist-he-proved-or-i-proved-that/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [I started at school. When I painted, all the girls would come and sit around me. I realised that this was a really good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/i-started-at-school-when-i-painted-all-the-girls-would-come-and-sit/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [When I was a young kid at art school, I loved the sensual geometry of Poliakoff, which, of course, is inherent in my own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/when-i-was-a-young-kid-at-art-school-i-loved-the-sensual-geometry-of/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [I'm Irish in the mythic, romantic sense, but in the living sense, I'm a Londoner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/i-m-irish-in-the-mythic-romantic-sense-but-in-the-living-sense-i-m-a/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [Imagine a world without art: it's George Orwell's nightmare!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/imagine-a-world-without-art-it-s-george-orwell-s-nightmare/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [I am a very spiritual person: I could say a Catholic with a strong underpinning of Zen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/i-am-a-very-spiritual-person-i-could-say-a-catholic-with-a-strong/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) > [If you stand over on the edge of the west coast of Ireland and look west, you are looking at something you can't see,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-scully/if-you-stand-over-on-the-edge-of-the-west-coast-of-ireland-and-look/) [Sean Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) [Explore all 31 Sean Scully quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-scully/) ## 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": "When I got into art school, I thought it was paradise. 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