--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The time is a thing; you don't have so…" description: "\"The time is a thing; you don't have so much time. A good trick is to try and think about a way to use material from one occupation for the other. It's ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d63/thomas-mcdonell-40219_art_the-time-is-a-thing-you-don-t-have-so-mu_242193.jpg" --- # The time is a thing; you don't have so much time. A good… ![“The time is a thing; you don't have so much time. A good trick is to try and think about a way to use material from one occupation for the other. It's like going through working a day job, this is so dumb to say, but you know how Julian Schnabel made those crockery paintings while he was working…” quote by Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d63/thomas-mcdonell-40219_art_the-time-is-a-thing-you-don-t-have-so-mu_242193.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d63/thomas-mcdonell-40219_art_the-time-is-a-thing-you-don-t-have-so-mu_242193.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d63/thomas-mcdonell-40219_art_the-time-is-a-thing-you-don-t-have-so-mu_242193.jpg) > “The time is a thing; you don't have so much time. A good trick is to try and think about a way to use material from one occupation for the other. It's like going through working a day job, this is so dumb to say, but you know how Julian Schnabel made those crockery paintings while he was working as a short-order cook? It's like that, using what is around, transforming that to create meaning and make art. Trying to take nothing and make... something.” [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cross‑disciplinary skills can be repurposed to create new art, turning everyday work into creative material. **In simple terms:** Use skills from one job to inspire art. Key Takeaway Leverage existing work for artistic ideas. Themes creativity resourcefulness interdisciplinary skill transfer Mood reflective encouraging Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - cooking - painting - design - career change Key Concepts innovation material culture artistic process Questions to Reflect On - What everyday tasks could become artistic material? - How can you protect core skills while experimenting? A Different Perspective Risk of diluting expertise if spread too thin. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-trying-1269716/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Dumb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dumb/) [Make Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-art/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-thing/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Use Material](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use-material-2425084/) [Using](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/using/) ## Related quotes > [I don't feel I'm trying to make art. I'm trying to make interesting things. People can relate to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-heatherwick/i-don-t-feel-i-m-trying-to-make-art-i-m-trying-to-make-interesting/) [Thomas Heatherwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-heatherwick/) > [I think the best research is people you meet and things that they say, rather than second hand accounts of something. I think when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/i-think-the-best-research-is-people-you-meet-and-things-that-they-say/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [Of course I don't use my A-material, it doesn't matter if they think I'm funny or not because they won't be thinking anything pretty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/of-course-i-don-t-use-my-a-material-it-doesn-t-matter-if-they-think-i/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [We must remember that everything depends on how we use a material, not on the material itself... New materials are not necessarily superior. Each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-mies-van-der-rohe/we-must-remember-that-everything-depends-on-how-we-use-a-material-not/) [Ludwig Mies van der Rohe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-mies-van-der-rohe/) > [You may have occasion to possess or use material things, but the secret of life lies in never missing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/you-may-have-occasion-to-possess-or-use-material-things-but-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“There is a great deal more to be got out of things than is generally got out of them, whether the thing be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/there-is-a-great-deal-more-to-be-got-out-of-things-than-is-generally/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [Beauty was so heavily important in my family, something I had to contend with. All those experiences allow me to make what I'm making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickalene-thomas/beauty-was-so-heavily-important-in-my-family-something-i-had-to/) [Mickalene Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickalene-thomas/) > [Art is about trying to find the good in people, and making the world a more compassionate place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keanu-reeves/art-is-about-trying-to-find-the-good-in-people-and-making-the-world-a/) [Keanu Reeves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keanu-reeves/) > [If you want to be an artist, go to every art gallery, if you want to be in movies, see movies! You have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-waters/if-you-want-to-be-an-artist-go-to-every-art-gallery-if-you-want-to-be/) [John Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-waters/) > [Sometimes I feel like art is supposed to mirror life, but strangely it's as if art is trying to catch up to life, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/sometimes-i-feel-like-art-is-supposed-to-mirror-life-but-strangely-it/) [Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/) > [The war was the end of an era, in art as well. And we were trying to create a new philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-sirk/the-war-was-the-end-of-an-era-in-art-as-well-and-we-were-trying-to/) [Douglas Sirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-sirk/) > [The commonality between science and art is in trying to see profoundly - to develop strategies of seeing and showing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-tufte/the-commonality-between-science-and-art-is-in-trying-to-see/) [Edward Tufte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-tufte/) > [“I think a lot of art is trying to make someone love you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keaton-henson/i-think-a-lot-of-art-is-trying-to-make-someone-love-you/) [Keaton Henson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keaton-henson/) > [I think, a lot of time, when I'm making art, I'm trying to get into a state of childlike play, where I'm not self-conscious;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-hanawalt/i-think-a-lot-of-time-when-i-m-making-art-i-m-trying-to-get-into-a/) [Lisa Hanawalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-hanawalt/) > [Beauty is a type of art everyone is trying to perfect, but no one realizes it's abstract art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keaton-stromberg/beauty-is-a-type-of-art-everyone-is-trying-to-perfect-but-no-one/) [Keaton Stromberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keaton-stromberg/) ## More by Thomas McDonell > [I mean, I like nice girls, and I like people who are generous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/i-mean-i-like-nice-girls-and-i-like-people-who-are-generous/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [The cliché about young actors is that they want to diversify the work that they do to show their range, but it's true. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/the-clich-about-young-actors-is-that-they-want-to-diversify-the-work/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [You really see that the art world bends over for Hollywood sometimes, in this way that is really grotesque, and the other way around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/you-really-see-that-the-art-world-bends-over-for-hollywood-sometimes/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [I went to a school in N.Y. that is conceptual and interdisciplinary and modeled after Cal Arts. It is not just painting or sculpture;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/i-went-to-a-school-in-n-y-that-is-conceptual-and-interdisciplinary/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [When I was in high school, I wasn't a troublemaker. I didn't get in fights. I was a good student and I had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/when-i-was-in-high-school-i-wasn-t-a-troublemaker-i-didn-t-get-in/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [The truth is, I don't really have a type of girl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/the-truth-is-i-don-t-really-have-a-type-of-girl/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [Well, it's really important to be honest with the person that you're seeing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/well-it-s-really-important-to-be-honest-with-the-person-that-you-re/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [I think there are certain technical things about acting that change between working in film and television. Everything definitely slows down and we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/i-think-there-are-certain-technical-things-about-acting-that-change/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [Going to the office of some stranger and waiting in a line, in a hallway, with five other guys who look just like you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/going-to-the-office-of-some-stranger-and-waiting-in-a-line-in-a/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) > [I wasn't into acting when I was a kid. Maybe because I was shy or it didn't occur to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mcdonell/i-wasn-t-into-acting-when-i-was-a-kid-maybe-because-i-was-shy-or-it/) [Thomas McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) [Explore all 11 Thomas McDonell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mcdonell/) ## 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": "The time is a thing; you don't have so much time. 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