--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We all admire the spangled acrobat with…" description: "\"“We all admire the spangled acrobat with classic grace meticulously walking his tight rope in the talcum light; but how much rarer art there is in the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfc/vladimir-nabokov-198_acrobat_we-all-admire-the-spangled-acrobat-with_2329071.jpg" --- # We all admire the spangled acrobat with classic grace… ![“We all admire the spangled acrobat with classic grace meticulously walking his tight rope in the talcum light; but how much rarer art there is in the sagging rope expert wearing scarecrow clothes and impersonating a grotesque drunk! I should know.” quote by Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfc/vladimir-nabokov-198_acrobat_we-all-admire-the-spangled-acrobat-with_2329071.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfc/vladimir-nabokov-198_acrobat_we-all-admire-the-spangled-acrobat-with_2329071.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfc/vladimir-nabokov-198_acrobat_we-all-admire-the-spangled-acrobat-with_2329071.jpg) > ““We all admire the spangled acrobat with classic grace meticulously walking his tight rope in the talcum light; but how much rarer art there is in the sagging rope expert wearing scarecrow clothes and impersonating a grotesque drunk! I should know.”” [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote contrasts polished artistry with raw, unconventional expression, valuing authenticity over refined performance. **In simple terms:** True art can be messy and raw, not just polished. Key Takeaway Embrace authenticity over perfection. Themes authenticity art creativity Mood reflective analytical Type literary critical When to use this quote - literary criticism - artistic evaluation - personal expression Key Concepts aesthetic value performance individualism Questions to Reflect On - What does authenticity mean to you? - When do you value raw expression over skill? A Different Perspective Polished skill may still lack depth; rawness can be off‑putting. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acrobat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acrobat/) ## Related quotes > [As he walks away on his own two feet--the toddler's body-mind has reached its moment of perfection. The world is his and he the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-j-kaplan/as-he-walks-away-on-his-own-two-feet-the-toddler-s-body-mind-has/) [Louise J. Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-j-kaplan/) > [“In France, it is only permissible to admire statues but tropical countries have no such prejudices, and the emergent Oriental in me took full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-lorrain/in-france-it-is-only-permissible-to-admire-statues-but-tropical/) [Jean Lorrain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-lorrain/) > [The politician is an acrobat. He keeps his balance by saying the opposite of what he does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-barres/the-politician-is-an-acrobat-he-keeps-his-balance-by-saying-the/) Maurice Barres > [“Painted and smiling, I balance on my trapeze. Luka is poised ten metres away, his muscles shining under the lights. The wooden circles in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsty-logan/painted-and-smiling-i-balance-on-my-trapeze-luka-is-poised-ten-metres/) [Kirsty Logan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsty-logan/) > [“Others may do as they please, but as for me,' he concluded ferociously, 'I shall never disclose to anybody that an acrobat, a trained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/others-may-do-as-they-please-but-as-for-me-he-concluded-ferociously-i/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [But remember that intent is everything. One does not just jump, one lifts into the air, one rises. In the same way the lifted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-de-mille/but-remember-that-intent-is-everything-one-does-not-just-jump-one/) [Agnes de Mille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-de-mille/) > [I'm not an acrobat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-buffer/i-m-not-an-acrobat/) [Bruce Buffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-buffer/) > [My friend and coach reminded me this week that there is a moment when the acrobat lets go of one trapeze and is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/my-friend-and-coach-reminded-me-this-week-that-there-is-a-moment-when/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [“The acrobat practices: He steps on the edge of a chair and leaps to the floor, feeling the rush as the air flares up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wataru-tsurumi/the-acrobat-practices-he-steps-on-the-edge-of-a-chair-and-leaps-to/) Wataru Tsurumi > [“The Marquis de V... - whose falsetto voice and little watery eyes I have always detested - was saying to me with a wicked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-lorrain/the-marquis-de-v-whose-falsetto-voice-and-little-watery-eyes-i-have/) [Jean Lorrain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-lorrain/) > [For an acrobat, the acting concepts of 'risk', 'a life or death situation' and 'trusting your partner' are visceral. If an actor loses focus,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-raz/for-an-acrobat-the-acting-concepts-of-risk-a-life-or-death-situation/) [Jeff Raz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-raz/) > [Sometimes a writer, like an acrobat, must try a trick that is too much for him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-a-writer-like-an-acrobat-must-try-a-trick-that-is-too-much/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Vladimir Nabokov > [And the rest is rust and stardust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/and-the-rest-is-rust-and-stardust/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [There is no science without fancy and no art without fact.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/there-is-no-science-without-fancy-and-no-art-without-fact/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“My solemn exasperation was to her the silence of love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/my-solemn-exasperation-was-to-her-the-silence-of-love/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [ “...under no circumstances would he \[Humbert Humbert\] have interfered with the innocence of a child, if there was the least risk of a row.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/under-no-circumstances-would-he-humbert-humbert-have-interfered-with/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/the-cradle-rocks-above-an-abyss-and-common-sense-tells-us-that-our/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“Ami azt illeti, Vannak kezdtek nagyon tetszeni a fák is, a csodák is meg az Adák is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/ami-azt-illeti-vannak-kezdtek-nagyon-tetszeni-a-f-k-is-a-csod-k-is/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [We live not only in a world of thoughts, but also in a world of things. Words without experience are meaningless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/we-live-not-only-in-a-world-of-thoughts-but-also-in-a-world-of-things/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“As palavras sem a experiência não teriam qualquer significado.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/as-palavras-sem-a-experi-ncia-n-o-teriam-qualquer-significado/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“It isn’t possible. I cannot imagine it. Come on over here, you foolish little doe, and tell me on what day I shall die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/it-isn-t-possible-i-cannot-imagine-it-come-on-over-here-you-foolish/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“Precautions to be taken in the case Of freak reincarnation: what to do On suddenly discovering that you Are now a young and vulnerable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/precautions-to-be-taken-in-the-case-of-freak-reincarnation-what-to-do/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [And this is the only immortality you and i may share, my Lolita.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/and-this-is-the-only-immortality-you-and-i-may-share-my-lolita/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“Be true to your Dick.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/be-true-to-your-dick/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“It is indeed a tricky name. It is often misspelt, because the eye tends to regard the "a" of the first syllable as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/it-is-indeed-a-tricky-name-it-is-often-misspelt-because-the-eye-tends/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“(T)here exist friendships which develop their own inner duration, their own eons of transparent time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/t-here-exist-friendships-which-develop-their-own-inner-duration-their/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [“She was all rose and honey.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/she-was-all-rose-and-honey/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) [Explore all 883 Vladimir Nabokov quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) ## More Acrobat quotes > [As he walks away on his own two feet--the toddler's body-mind has reached its moment of perfection. The world is his and he the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-j-kaplan/as-he-walks-away-on-his-own-two-feet-the-toddler-s-body-mind-has/) [Louise J. Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-j-kaplan/) > [For an acrobat, the acting concepts of 'risk', 'a life or death situation' and 'trusting your partner' are visceral. If an actor loses focus,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-raz/for-an-acrobat-the-acting-concepts-of-risk-a-life-or-death-situation/) [Jeff Raz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-raz/) > [“The Marquis de V... - whose falsetto voice and little watery eyes I have always detested - was saying to me with a wicked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-lorrain/the-marquis-de-v-whose-falsetto-voice-and-little-watery-eyes-i-have/) [Jean Lorrain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-lorrain/) > [“The acrobat practices: He steps on the edge of a chair and leaps to the floor, feeling the rush as the air flares up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wataru-tsurumi/the-acrobat-practices-he-steps-on-the-edge-of-a-chair-and-leaps-to/) Wataru Tsurumi > [My friend and coach reminded me this week that there is a moment when the acrobat lets go of one trapeze and is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/my-friend-and-coach-reminded-me-this-week-that-there-is-a-moment-when/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [I'm not an acrobat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-buffer/i-m-not-an-acrobat/) [Bruce Buffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-buffer/) > [But remember that intent is everything. One does not just jump, one lifts into the air, one rises. In the same way the lifted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-de-mille/but-remember-that-intent-is-everything-one-does-not-just-jump-one/) [Agnes de Mille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-de-mille/) > [“Others may do as they please, but as for me,' he concluded ferociously, 'I shall never disclose to anybody that an acrobat, a trained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/others-may-do-as-they-please-but-as-for-me-he-concluded-ferociously-i/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [“Painted and smiling, I balance on my trapeze. Luka is poised ten metres away, his muscles shining under the lights. The wooden circles in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsty-logan/painted-and-smiling-i-balance-on-my-trapeze-luka-is-poised-ten-metres/) [Kirsty Logan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsty-logan/) > [The politician is an acrobat. He keeps his balance by saying the opposite of what he does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-barres/the-politician-is-an-acrobat-he-keeps-his-balance-by-saying-the/) Maurice Barres > [“In France, it is only permissible to admire statues but tropical countries have no such prejudices, and the emergent Oriental in me took full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-lorrain/in-france-it-is-only-permissible-to-admire-statues-but-tropical/) [Jean Lorrain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-lorrain/) > [Sometimes a writer, like an acrobat, must try a trick that is too much for him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-a-writer-like-an-acrobat-must-try-a-trick-that-is-too-much/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 13 Acrobat quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acrobat/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We all admire the spangled acrobat with classic grace meticulously walking his tight rope in the talcum light; but how much rarer art there is in the sagging rope expert wearing scarecrow clothes and impersonating a grotesque drunk! 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