--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Art isn't a science or a job; it's alive." description: "\"Art isn't a science or a job; it's alive.\" — Zhang Xiaogang" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/zhang-xiaogang-60493_alive_art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive_2834971.png" --- # Art isn't a science or a job; it's alive. ![“Art isn't a science or a job; it's alive.” quote by Zhang Xiaogang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/zhang-xiaogang-60493_alive_art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive_2834971.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/zhang-xiaogang-60493_alive_art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive_2834971.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/zhang-xiaogang-60493_alive_art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive_2834971.png) > “Art isn't a science or a job; it's alive.” [Zhang Xiaogang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xiaogang/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art transcends scientific method and employment, existing as a living, evolving expression of humanity. **In simple terms:** Art is alive, not a job. Key Takeaway Embrace art’s vitality. Themes art creativity life philosophy Mood inspired thoughtful Type philosophical creative When to use this quote - museum visit - creative workshop - personal reflection - teaching Key Concepts existentialism aesthetics Questions to Reflect On - What makes art feel alive to you? - How does art influence daily life? A Different Perspective May romanticize struggle. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-is/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Isn Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/isn-science-559490/) [Job Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job-alive-3635083/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Science Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-job-2869598/) ## Related quotes > [Don't need a degree in rocket science to do this job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/don-t-need-a-degree-in-rocket-science-to-do-this-job/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [Science's job is to map our ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/science-s-job-is-to-map-our-ignorance/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [The way to tell if your job is done: if you're alive, you've got a job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bach/the-way-to-tell-if-your-job-is-done-if-you-re-alive-you-ve-got-a-job/) [Richard Bach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bach/) > [When a person applies enthusiasm to his job, the job will itself become alive with exciting new possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/when-a-person-applies-enthusiasm-to-his-job-the-job-will-itself/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [We're not all equal, it's simply not true. That isn't science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-d-watson/we-re-not-all-equal-it-s-simply-not-true-that-isn-t-science/) [James D. Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-d-watson/) > [Science is the best thing humans beings have ever come up with. And if it isn't, science will fix it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/science-is-the-best-thing-humans-beings-have-ever-come-up-with-and-if/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [Life isn't a science. We make it up as we go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-hirschfeld/life-isn-t-a-science-we-make-it-up-as-we-go/) [Al Hirschfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-hirschfeld/) > [If we say that religion is a virus, then why isn't science a virus?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/if-we-say-that-religion-is-a-virus-then-why-isn-t-science-a-virus/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [To me the purpose of art is to produce something alive...but with a separate, and of course one hopes, with an everlasting life of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-green/to-me-the-purpose-of-art-is-to-produce-something-alive-but-with-a/) [Henry Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-green/) > [it's not my job to preach a sermon. Art is anyhow a homily. My job is to speak in living images, not in arguments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikolai-gogol/it-s-not-my-job-to-preach-a-sermon-art-is-anyhow-a-homily-my-job-is/) [Nikolai Gogol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikolai-gogol/) > [If you're just letting the time pass at your job, it's just dead time and you'll never get it back. If at that job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/if-you-re-just-letting-the-time-pass-at-your-job-it-s-just-dead-time/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [Surely to root politics out of art is a highly necessary undertaking: for the freedom of art, like that of science, depends entirely upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/surely-to-root-politics-out-of-art-is-a-highly-necessary-undertaking/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) > [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/) > [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/) > [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/) ## More by Zhang Xiaogang > [As an artist, the most important feeling is loneliness. So when I say artists need to isolate themselves from society this is what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xiaogang/as-an-artist-the-most-important-feeling-is-loneliness-so-when-i-say/) [Zhang Xiaogang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xiaogang/) > [Good art is born from knowing yourself deeply: Your art cannot hide how much you have discovered about yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xiaogang/good-art-is-born-from-knowing-yourself-deeply-your-art-cannot-hide/) [Zhang Xiaogang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xiaogang/) > [I found everything so remote but, at the same time, familiar when I occasionally looked into the mountains, rocks, pine trees and plums depicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xiaogang/i-found-everything-so-remote-but-at-the-same-time-familiar-when-i/) [Zhang Xiaogang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xiaogang/) > [I have the belief that a person and his art should have one direction; your work should be a synonym for your person -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xiaogang/i-have-the-belief-that-a-person-and-his-art-should-have-one-direction/) [Zhang Xiaogang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xiaogang/) [Explore all 5 Zhang Xiaogang quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xiaogang/) ## More Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) [Adam Ant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ant/) > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Art isn't a science or a job; it's alive.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Zhang Xiaogang" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xiaogang/art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alive" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xiaogang/art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/zhang-xiaogang-60493_alive_art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive_2834971.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/zhang-xiaogang-60493_alive_art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive_2834971.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/401/zhang-xiaogang-60493_alive_art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive_2834971.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Art isn't a science or a job; it's alive.” — Zhang Xiaogang", "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": "Zhang Xiaogang", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhang-xiaogang/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Art isn't a science or a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xiaogang/art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhang-xiaogang/art-isn-t-a-science-or-a-job-it-s-alive/#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 } } ] } ```