--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was a kid, I suppose I got more…" description: "\"When I was a kid, I suppose I got more praise for being able to draw things and paint things than I did for my little amateur poems I was writing. But ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6f/ted-kooser-16216_artist_when-i-was-a-kid-i-suppose-i-got-more-pr_906776.jpg" --- # When I was a kid, I suppose I got more praise for being… ![“When I was a kid, I suppose I got more praise for being able to draw things and paint things than I did for my little amateur poems I was writing. But the thing that I'm trying to do with my painting is that I'm trying to keep it in the realm of pleasure. I don't show my work, I don't try to sell…” quote by Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6f/ted-kooser-16216_artist_when-i-was-a-kid-i-suppose-i-got-more-pr_906776.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6f/ted-kooser-16216_artist_when-i-was-a-kid-i-suppose-i-got-more-pr_906776.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6f/ted-kooser-16216_artist_when-i-was-a-kid-i-suppose-i-got-more-pr_906776.jpg) > “When I was a kid, I suppose I got more praise for being able to draw things and paint things than I did for my little amateur poems I was writing. But the thing that I'm trying to do with my painting is that I'm trying to keep it in the realm of pleasure. I don't show my work, I don't try to sell it.” [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art should remain a source of personal pleasure, not a commodity for public approval. **In simple terms:** Create art for joy, not for selling. Key Takeaway Make art for personal fulfillment. Themes creativity authenticity artistic integrity pleasure Mood reflective calm Type personal inspirational When to use this quote - personal journaling - private exhibitions - quiet studios - mindful practice Key Concepts Aesthetic philosophy psychology of creativity Questions to Reflect On - How do you protect creative joy? - What boundaries keep art personal? A Different Perspective Commercial pressure can erode authenticity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Paint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint/) [Paint Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint-things-443760/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Painting Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting-trying-1215297/) [Pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleasure/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praise/) [Things Paint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-paint-1294686/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Trying Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying-painting-1294687/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I don't paint things. I only paint the difference between things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-matisse/i-don-t-paint-things-i-only-paint-the-difference-between-things/) [Henri Matisse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-matisse/) > [I just happen to like ordinary things. When I paint them, I don't try to make them extraordinary. I just try to paint them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-warhol/i-just-happen-to-like-ordinary-things-when-i-paint-them-i-don-t-try/) [Andy Warhol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-warhol/) > [Every single painting is different. I'm always trying to figure out what I'm interested in. Usually when I go through and I make the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damian-loeb/every-single-painting-is-different-i-m-always-trying-to-figure-out/) [Damian Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damian-loeb/) > [If you can see a world within a portrait I would be happy with that. I don't want to tell the story with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-fox/if-you-can-see-a-world-within-a-portrait-i-would-be-happy-with-that-i/) [Danny Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-fox/) > [It was so simple to paint things as I saw them; to put without special calculation a red close to a blue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gauguin/it-was-so-simple-to-paint-things-as-i-saw-them-to-put-without-special/) [Paul Gauguin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gauguin/) > [“You’re trying to paint things as either black or white,” he said. “As either good or evil. It’s never that neat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-chamberlain/you-re-trying-to-paint-things-as-either-black-or-white-he-said-as/) [Diane Chamberlain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-chamberlain/) > [I paint things as they are. I don't comment. I record.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-de-toulouse-lautrec/i-paint-things-as-they-are-i-don-t-comment-i-record/) [Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-de-toulouse-lautrec/) > [I do house things. I paint. I do portraits. I also paint my house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-ford/i-do-house-things-i-paint-i-do-portraits-i-also-paint-my-house/) [Willa Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-ford/) > [I just happen to like ordinary things. When I paint them, I don't try to make them extraordinary. I just try to paint them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-warhol/i-just-happen-to-like-ordinary-things-when-i-paint-them-i-don-t-try-2/) [Andy Warhol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-warhol/) > [One of the hardest things to do is to paint darkness which nonetheless has light in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-van-gogh/one-of-the-hardest-things-to-do-is-to-paint-darkness-which/) [Vincent Van Gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-van-gogh/) > [It's not what you paint. It's how you paint it. You don't have to paint elaborate things. Paint simple things as beautifully as you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-van-wyk/it-s-not-what-you-paint-it-s-how-you-paint-it-you-don-t-have-to-paint/) [Helen Van Wyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-van-wyk/) > [I paint things as they are. I don't comment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-de-toulouse-lautrec/i-paint-things-as-they-are-i-don-t-comment/) [Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-de-toulouse-lautrec/) > [When you paint things exactly as they are, you don't show people anything that they couldn't see for themselves; you're telling them what they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-strisik/when-you-paint-things-exactly-as-they-are-you-don-t-show-people/) [Paul Strisik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-strisik/) > [I paint not the things I see but the feelings they arouse in me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kline/i-paint-not-the-things-i-see-but-the-feelings-they-arouse-in-me/) [Franz Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kline/) > [To paint things as they are requires a minute attention, and employs the memory rather than the fancy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/to-paint-things-as-they-are-requires-a-minute-attention-and-employs/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) ## More by Ted Kooser > [The poem is the device through which the ordinary world is seen in a new way - engaging, compelling, even beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/the-poem-is-the-device-through-which-the-ordinary-world-is-seen-in-a/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [If you can find two poems in a book, it could be a pretty good book for you. You know, two poems you really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/if-you-can-find-two-poems-in-a-book-it-could-be-a-pretty-good-book/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [There's nothing wrong with delighting in what you do. In fact, most of the fun you'll have as a poet will come about during…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/there-s-nothing-wrong-with-delighting-in-what-you-do-in-fact-most-of/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [“Considering the ways in which so many of us waste our time, what would be wrong with a world in which everybody were writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/considering-the-ways-in-which-so-many-of-us-waste-our-time-what-would/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [When she left me I stood out in the thunderstorm, hoping to be destroyed by lightning. It missed, first left, then right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/when-she-left-me-i-stood-out-in-the-thunderstorm-hoping-to-be/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [Every poet gets to choose what kind of community he or she serves with the poems, and it's true that there is a community…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/every-poet-gets-to-choose-what-kind-of-community-he-or-she-serves/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [I had in effect been thrown out of graduate school because I was a lousy graduate student, and I had to find a job,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/i-had-in-effect-been-thrown-out-of-graduate-school-because-i-was-a/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [If I don't take the risk, I'll wind up with a bloodless poem. I have to be out there on the edge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/if-i-don-t-take-the-risk-i-ll-wind-up-with-a-bloodless-poem-i-have-to/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [Keeping a journal is like taking good care of one’s heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/keeping-a-journal-is-like-taking-good-care-of-one-s-heart/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [There's always been what I would call the William Carlos Williams strain, in which poems of simplicity and clarity are valued by a different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/there-s-always-been-what-i-would-call-the-william-carlos-williams/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [I like the poem on the page and not at the podium. I like to address the poem in peace and quiet, not on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/i-like-the-poem-on-the-page-and-not-at-the-podium-i-like-to-address/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [a happy birthday this evening, I sat by an open window and read till the light was gone and the book was no more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/a-happy-birthday-this-evening-i-sat-by-an-open-window-and-read-till/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [Wallace Stevens had more time to write as an insurance agent. He was a bond lawyer and I know that insurance company lawyers don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/wallace-stevens-had-more-time-to-write-as-an-insurance-agent-he-was-a/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [I like the idea of there being times when even words cost so much you used them sparingly. I have known a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/i-like-the-idea-of-there-being-times-when-even-words-cost-so-much-you/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) > [In my work, I really try to look at ordinary things quite closely to see if there isn't a little bit of something special…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-kooser/in-my-work-i-really-try-to-look-at-ordinary-things-quite-closely-to/) [Ted Kooser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) [Explore all 40 Ted Kooser quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-kooser/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“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/) > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [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 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/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I was a kid, I suppose I got more praise for being able to draw things and paint things than I did for my little amateur poems I was writing. But the thing that I'm trying to do with my painting is that I'm trying to keep it in the realm of pleasure. 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