--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I feel sometimes an American artist must…" description: "\"I feel sometimes an American artist must feel, like a baseball player or something - a member of a team writing American history.\" — Willem de Kooning" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/willem-de-kooning-12563_american-history_i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must_753120.jpg" --- # I feel sometimes an American artist must feel, like a… ![“I feel sometimes an American artist must feel, like a baseball player or something - a member of a team writing American history.” quote by Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/willem-de-kooning-12563_american-history_i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must_753120.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/willem-de-kooning-12563_american-history_i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must_753120.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/willem-de-kooning-12563_american-history_i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must_753120.jpg) > “I feel sometimes an American artist must feel, like a baseball player or something - a member of a team writing American history.” [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. American artists share a collective narrative, like teammates shaping history. **In simple terms:** Artists contribute to national story. Key Takeaway Embrace collaborative creativity. Themes art national identity teamwork Mood thoughtful proud Type inspirational analytical When to use this quote - public murals - national celebrations - team projects - cultural policy Key Concepts cultural studies creative process Questions to Reflect On - How does teamwork influence artistic freedom? - Can national identity be redefined through art? A Different Perspective Individualism can clash with collective narrative. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-artist-1843979/) [American history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-history/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Artist Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist-feel-380860/) [Ball player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ball-player/) [Baseball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baseball/) [Baseball player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baseball-player/) [Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel/) [Feel American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-american-315054/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Members](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/members/) [Player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/player/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Team](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/team/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-american-1009323/) ## Related quotes > [My interest in writing about American history stemmed originally, I think, from a subconscious desire to find roots - I felt like a girl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-fritz/my-interest-in-writing-about-american-history-stemmed-originally-i/) [Jean Fritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-fritz/) > [Whatever else anyone says he was, he may have been. But Tupac really was a great American artist. The passage of time allows us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/afeni-shakur/whatever-else-anyone-says-he-was-he-may-have-been-but-tupac-really/) [Afeni Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/afeni-shakur/) > [I'm very much involved in art. I started buying art a few years ago and really like the work of T.C. Cannon, who is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronnie-dunn/i-m-very-much-involved-in-art-i-started-buying-art-a-few-years-ago/) [Ronnie Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronnie-dunn/) > [I really admire Ana Mendieta. She was a Cuban American artist who died the year I was born and whose work examines violence, feminism,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-healey/i-really-admire-ana-mendieta-she-was-a-cuban-american-artist-who-died/) [Emma Healey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-healey/) > [I wanted to show that an African-American artist could make it in this country on a national level in the graphic arts. I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-pinkney/i-wanted-to-show-that-an-african-american-artist-could-make-it-in/) [Jerry Pinkney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-pinkney/) > [There is a political and racial context behind everything that I do. Not always because I design it that way, or because I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/there-is-a-political-and-racial-context-behind-everything-that-i-do/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [Norman Rockwell - even though we think of him as a great American artist, in a lot of museums he has not garnered that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mellody-hobson/norman-rockwell-even-though-we-think-of-him-as-a-great-american/) [Mellody Hobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mellody-hobson/) > [If you come across an American artist right now who has no political opinions or is afraid of talking politics, be very concerned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-palmer/if-you-come-across-an-american-artist-right-now-who-has-no-political/) [Amanda Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-palmer/) > [Norman Rockwell, the Brueghel of the 20th century bourgeoisie, the Holbein of Jell-O ads and magazine covers; by common assent, the most American artist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-adler/norman-rockwell-the-brueghel-of-the-20th-century-bourgeoisie-the/) [Jerry Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-adler/) > [One of the dangers of the American artist is that he finds himself almost exclusively thrown in with persons more or less in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/one-of-the-dangers-of-the-american-artist-is-that-he-finds-himself/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [“America’s short-lived experiment with language planning is so obscure to modern memory that while the Klingon language has a 3,000-word entry on Wikipedia, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lane-greene/america-s-short-lived-experiment-with-language-planning-is-so-obscure/) [Robert Lane Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lane-greene/) > [I think in many ways the problem that my writing would have with an American reviewer is that Americans find difficulty very hard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamaica-kincaid/i-think-in-many-ways-the-problem-that-my-writing-would-have-with-an/) [Jamaica Kincaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamaica-kincaid/) > [I'm accountable - this sounds emo - to black American writing, Southern writing, Southern black American writing, American writing and my people. That's kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiese-laymon/i-m-accountable-this-sounds-emo-to-black-american-writing-southern/) [Kiese Laymon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiese-laymon/) > [“I am, apparently, of that rare breed that likes to write. The demands of a chapter pull me from bed in the morning, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-freeman-hawke/i-am-apparently-of-that-rare-breed-that-likes-to-write-the-demands-of/) [David Freeman Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-freeman-hawke/) > [“I think in many ways the problem that my writing would have with an American reviewer is that Americans find difficulty very hard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamaica-kincaid/i-think-in-many-ways-the-problem-that-my-writing-would-have-with-an-2/) [Jamaica Kincaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamaica-kincaid/) ## More by Willem de Kooning > [The texture of experience is prior to everything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/the-texture-of-experience-is-prior-to-everything-else/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Art should not have to be a certain way,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/art-should-not-have-to-be-a-certain-way/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [I think I'm painting a picture of two women but it may turn out to be a landscape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/i-think-i-m-painting-a-picture-of-two-women-but-it-may-turn-out-to-be/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Im not someone whos ever said anything definitive about his work. In my life also I have very little fixed form. I can change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/im-not-someone-whos-ever-said-anything-definitive-about-his-work-in/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Style is a fraud. I always felt the Greeks were hiding behind their columns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/style-is-a-fraud-i-always-felt-the-greeks-were-hiding-behind-their/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Whatever an artist's personal feelings are, as soon as an artist fills a certain area on the canvas or circumscribes it, he becomes historical.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/whatever-an-artist-s-personal-feelings-are-as-soon-as-an-artist-fills/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [The idea of space is given to the artist to change if he can. The subject matter in the abstract is space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/the-idea-of-space-is-given-to-the-artist-to-change-if-he-can-the/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [If I stretch my arms and wonder where my fingers are - that is all the space I need as a painter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/if-i-stretch-my-arms-and-wonder-where-my-fingers-are-that-is-all-the/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [The artist fills space with an attitude. The attitude never comes from himself alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/the-artist-fills-space-with-an-attitude-the-attitude-never-comes-from/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Flesh was the reason why oil painting was invented](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/flesh-was-the-reason-why-oil-painting-was-invented/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Maybe in that earlier phase I was painting the woman in me. Art isn't a wholly masculine occupation, you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/maybe-in-that-earlier-phase-i-was-painting-the-woman-in-me-art-isn-t/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Yes, I am influenced by everbody. But every time I put my hands in my pockets I find someone else's fingers there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/yes-i-am-influenced-by-everbody-but-every-time-i-put-my-hands-in-my/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [I'd like to get all the colors in the world into one painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/i-d-like-to-get-all-the-colors-in-the-world-into-one-painting/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Spiritually I am wherever my spirit allows me to be, and that is not necessarily in the future... Art never seems to make me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/spiritually-i-am-wherever-my-spirit-allows-me-to-be-and-that-is-not/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [If you're an artist, the problem is to make a picture work whether you are happy or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/if-you-re-an-artist-the-problem-is-to-make-a-picture-work-whether-you/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) [Explore all 54 Willem de Kooning quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) ## More American history quotes > [Adam Clayton Powell's entire political career has to be looked at in the entire context of the American history and the history of, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/adam-clayton-powell-s-entire-political-career-has-to-be-looked-at-in/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-prescott/don-t-fire-until-you-see-the-whites-of-their-eyes/) [William H. Prescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-prescott/) > [“In December of 2007 human bones including skulls, which have been radiocarbon dated back to between 1304 and 1424, were found in a museum…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/captain-hank-bracker-seawater-one/in-december-of-2007-human-bones-including-skulls-which-have-been/) [Captain Hank Bracker, "Seawater One](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/captain-hank-bracker-seawater-one/) > [John Lane has long been recognized as one of the South's finest poets and memoirists. This debut establishes him as one of our finest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/john-lane-has-long-been-recognized-as-one-of-the-south-s-finest-poets/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [No man-made structure in all of American history has been hated so much, by so many, for so long, with such good reason, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/no-man-made-structure-in-all-of-american-history-has-been-hated-so/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [The problem that we have is that most Americans don't even study American history, let alone Pinochet, Mussolini, Hitler, Stalin and all these guys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/the-problem-that-we-have-is-that-most-americans-don-t-even-study/) [Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/) > [We must not falsely teach American history in our schools. We have a law requiring state textbook oversight to guard against frauds like Zinn,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-daniels/we-must-not-falsely-teach-american-history-in-our-schools-we-have-a/) [Mitch Daniels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-daniels/) > [The only thing we have to fear is fear itself-and possibly teh bogey man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-paulsen/the-only-thing-we-have-to-fear-is-fear-itself-and-possibly-teh-bogey/) [Pat Paulsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-paulsen/) > [“Thanks in part to the rapid mechanization of cotton production in the early 1940s, which ultimately threw millions of farm laborers out of work,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-t-patterson/thanks-in-part-to-the-rapid-mechanization-of-cotton-production-in-the/) [James T. Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-t-patterson/) > [“dark say: berthenia belle never forget the tongue hid name”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathleen-margaret/dark-say-berthenia-belle-never-forget-the-tongue-hid-name/) [Cathleen Margaret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathleen-margaret/) > [Throughout American history many of our social gains and much of our progress toward democracy were made possible by the active intervention of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-washington/throughout-american-history-many-of-our-social-gains-and-much-of-our/) [Harold Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-washington/) > [Modern Democrats aren't the first political party to abuse power - far from it. Obama isn'€™t the first president to abuse executive power -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harsanyi/modern-democrats-aren-t-the-first-political-party-to-abuse-power-far/) [David Harsanyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harsanyi/) > [Medicare and Social Security have created the healthiest and most financially secure generation of senior citizens in American history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-walsh/medicare-and-social-security-have-created-the-healthiest-and-most/) [Jim Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-walsh/) > [The school curriculum today, particularly American history, is a shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/the-school-curriculum-today-particularly-american-history-is-a-shame/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [“I used to walk out, at night, to the breakwater which divides the end of the harbor form the broad moor of the salt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-doty/i-used-to-walk-out-at-night-to-the-breakwater-which-divides-the-end/) [Mark Doty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-doty/) [Browse all 685 American history quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-history/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I feel sometimes an American artist must feel, like a baseball player or something - a member of a team writing American history.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Willem de Kooning" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must-feel-like-a-baseball-player/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American history" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must-feel-like-a-baseball-player/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/willem-de-kooning-12563_american-history_i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must_753120.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/willem-de-kooning-12563_american-history_i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must_753120.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63a/willem-de-kooning-12563_american-history_i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must_753120.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I feel sometimes an American artist must feel, like a baseball player or something - a member of a team…” — Willem de Kooning", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Willem de Kooning", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I feel sometimes an American artist...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must-feel-like-a-baseball-player/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/i-feel-sometimes-an-american-artist-must-feel-like-a-baseball-player/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```