--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Many people seem to think that art is a…" description: "\"Many people seem to think that art is a luxury to be imported and tacked on to life. Art springs out of the very stuff that life is made of. Most of ou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64e/willa-cather-634_add_many-people-seem-to-think-that-art-is-a_638959.jpg" --- # Many people seem to think that art is a luxury to be… ![“Many people seem to think that art is a luxury to be imported and tacked on to life. Art springs out of the very stuff that life is made of. Most of our young authors start to write a story and make a few observations from nature to add local color. The results are invariably false and hollow. Art…” quote by Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64e/willa-cather-634_add_many-people-seem-to-think-that-art-is-a_638959.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64e/willa-cather-634_add_many-people-seem-to-think-that-art-is-a_638959.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64e/willa-cather-634_add_many-people-seem-to-think-that-art-is-a_638959.jpg) > “Many people seem to think that art is a luxury to be imported and tacked on to life. Art springs out of the very stuff that life is made of. Most of our young authors start to write a story and make a few observations from nature to add local color. The results are invariably false and hollow. Art must spring out of the fullness and richness of life.” [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) ## 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 emerge from everyday experiences, not be treated as an add‑on luxury. **In simple terms:** Art comes from life itself. Key Takeaway Create art rooted in real life. Themes creativity authenticity culture Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - writing - painting - music - teaching Key Concepts existentialism aesthetic theory Questions to Reflect On - How can you embed everyday moments into your work? - What does “luxury” mean in creative contexts? A Different Perspective Art can become pretentious if detached from lived reality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Color](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/color/) [Fullness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fullness/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Luxury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luxury/) [Observation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/observation/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Richness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/richness/) [Richness of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/richness-of-life/) [Spring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spring/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Religion and art spring from the same root and are close kin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/religion-and-art-spring-from-the-same-root-and-are-close-kin-2/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [In Spring! In the creation of art it must be as it is in Spring!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-schoenberg/in-spring-in-the-creation-of-art-it-must-be-as-it-is-in-spring/) [Arnold Schoenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-schoenberg/) > [To be able to do art, it was a luxury to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anchee-min/to-be-able-to-do-art-it-was-a-luxury-to-me/) [Anchee Min](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anchee-min/) > [I don't understand why people talk of art as a luxury when it's a mind-altering possibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-don-t-understand-why-people-talk-of-art-as-a-luxury-when-it-s-a/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Art is a luxury but also a necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/art-is-a-luxury-but-also-a-necessity/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [I come from a generation where you put the art out and had the luxury to sit back and watch the world deconstruct it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/i-come-from-a-generation-where-you-put-the-art-out-and-had-the-luxury/) M.I.A > [Art is not entertainment. Art is not luxury goods. Art is culture. It is you and me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paige-bradley/art-is-not-entertainment-art-is-not-luxury-goods-art-is-culture-it-is/) Paige Bradley > [Art is not a luxury, but a necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/art-is-not-a-luxury-but-a-necessity/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [The greatest foe to art is luxury, art cannot live in its atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-morris/the-greatest-foe-to-art-is-luxury-art-cannot-live-in-its-atmosphere/) [William Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-morris/) > [The best thing about art is that it is the one luxury in life that can be enjoyed by everyone. And it lasts forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynda-resnick/the-best-thing-about-art-is-that-it-is-the-one-luxury-in-life-that/) [Lynda Resnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynda-resnick/) > [Art is a luxury. It's not necessary for you to - you can work your job and you can make some money and never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wynton-marsalis/art-is-a-luxury-it-s-not-necessary-for-you-to-you-can-work-your-job/) [Wynton Marsalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wynton-marsalis/) > [I learned that the richness of life is found in adventure. . . . It develops self-reliance and independence. Life then teems with excitement.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-learned-that-the-richness-of-life-is-found-in-adventure-it-develops/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you have a good story, it doesn’t have to be overproduced. I want our stories to reveal the wonders of the human spirit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huell-howser/if-you-have-a-good-story-it-doesn-t-have-to-be-overproduced-i-want/) Huell Howser > [O, do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men! Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phillips-brooks/o-do-not-pray-for-easy-lives-pray-to-be-stronger-men-do-not-pray-for/) [Phillips Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phillips-brooks/) > [“The richness of life is hidden until relationships are only based on love instead of ego”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gianni-fresco/the-richness-of-life-is-hidden-until-relationships-are-only-based-on/) Gianni Fresco ## More by Willa Cather > [The end is nothing; the road is all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/the-end-is-nothing-the-road-is-all/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Of all the bewildering things about a new country, the absence of human landmarks is one of the most depressing and disheartening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/of-all-the-bewildering-things-about-a-new-country-the-absence-of/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Success is less interesting than struggle. There is great pleasure in the effort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/success-is-less-interesting-than-struggle-there-is-great-pleasure-in/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“I only knew the schoolbooks said he "died in the wilderness, of a broken heart." "More than him has done that," said Antonia sadly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/i-only-knew-the-schoolbooks-said-he-died-in-the-wilderness-of-a/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Have the last word ma'm," he said cheerfully. "It's a lady's privilege.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/have-the-last-word-ma-m-he-said-cheerfully-it-s-a-lady-s-privilege/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > ["More than him has done that," said Antonia sadly, and the girls murmured assent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/more-than-him-has-done-that-said-antonia-sadly-and-the-girls-murmured/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Nothing mattered ... but writing books, and living the kind of life that made it possible to write them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/nothing-mattered-but-writing-books-and-living-the-kind-of-life-that/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Money and office and success are the consolations of impotence. 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We've someway always felt alike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/you-remember-how-homesick-i-used-to-get-and-what-long-talks-we-used/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“He placed this book in my grandmother's hands, looked at her entreatingly, and said, with an earnestness which I shall never forget, "Te-e-ach, te-e-ach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/he-placed-this-book-in-my-grandmother-s-hands-looked-at-her/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [The sincerity of feeling that is possible between a writer and a reader is one of the finest things I know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/the-sincerity-of-feeling-that-is-possible-between-a-writer-and-a/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [One realizes that human relationships are the tragic necessity of human life; that they can never be wholly satisfactory, that every ego is half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/one-realizes-that-human-relationships-are-the-tragic-necessity-of/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Our tree became the talking tree of the fairy tale; legends and stories nestled like birds in its branches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/our-tree-became-the-talking-tree-of-the-fairy-tale-legends-and/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Isn’t it queer: there are only two or three human stories, and they go on repeating themselves as fiercely as if they had never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/isn-t-it-queer-there-are-only-two-or-three-human-stories-and-they-go/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) [Explore all 434 Willa Cather quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) ## More Add quotes > [Most marriages don't add two people together. They subtract one from the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-fleming/most-marriages-don-t-add-two-people-together-they-subtract-one-from/) [Ian Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-fleming/) > [Friendship, "the wine of life," should, like a well-stocked cellar, be continually renewed; and it is consolatory to think, that although we can seldom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-boswell/friendship-the-wine-of-life-should-like-a-well-stocked-cellar-be/) [James Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-boswell/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [Give me a platter of choice finnan haddie, freshly cooked in its bath of water and milk, add melted butter, a slice or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-claiborne/give-me-a-platter-of-choice-finnan-haddie-freshly-cooked-in-its-bath/) [Craig Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-claiborne/) > [Writing adds up to the conscience of our times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-firrell/writing-adds-up-to-the-conscience-of-our-times/) [Martin Firrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-firrell/) > [A 'modern' man has nothing to add to modernism, if only because he has nothing to oppose it with. The well-adapted drop off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elias-canetti/a-modern-man-has-nothing-to-add-to-modernism-if-only-because-he-has/) [Elias Canetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elias-canetti/) > [Observation and theory get on best when they are mixed together, both helping one another in the pursuit of truth. It is a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-eddington/observation-and-theory-get-on-best-when-they-are-mixed-together-both/) [Arthur Eddington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-eddington/) > [I may add that we have more than once stated our willingness to conclude nonaggression pacts with the states neighboring our own!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/i-may-add-that-we-have-more-than-once-stated-our-willingness-to/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [The American Constitution declares 'All men are born equal.' The British Socialist Party add: 'All men must be kept equal'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-american-constitution-declares-all-men-are-born-equal-the-british/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [New generations of humans inherit the acquired discoveries of generations past, allowing cosmic insight to accumulate without limit. Each discovery of science therefore adds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/new-generations-of-humans-inherit-the-acquired-discoveries-of/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Thirty days is just about the right amount of time to add a new habit or subtract a habit - like watching the news…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-cutts/thirty-days-is-just-about-the-right-amount-of-time-to-add-a-new-habit/) [Matt Cutts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-cutts/) > [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/) [John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/) > [The Greeks said grandly in their tragic phrase, 'Let no one be called happy till his death;' to which I would add, 'Let no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-barrett-browning/the-greeks-said-grandly-in-their-tragic-phrase-let-no-one-be-called/) [Elizabeth Barrett Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-barrett-browning/) > [Mostly we just add to the piles of rainbow glass that's been blown off the exteriors of the cany-colored buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/mostly-we-just-add-to-the-piles-of-rainbow-glass-that-s-been-blown/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Global is a unifying bond for people. Once they get outside their own heads and their own communities and see themselves in a broader…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-calvin/global-is-a-unifying-bond-for-people-once-they-get-outside-their-own/) [Kathy Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-calvin/) Browse all 2,710 Add quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Many people seem to think that art is a luxury to be imported and tacked on to life. Art springs out of the very stuff that life is made of. Most of our young authors start to write a story and make a few observations from nature to add local color. The results are invariably false and hollow. 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