---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In this art form, in any art form…"
description: "\"In this art form, in any art form, generalities are useless.\" — Zubin Mehta"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60f/zubin-mehta-7563_art_in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-general_1731655.png"
---

#  In this art form, in any art form, generalities are useless.

![“In this art form, in any art form, generalities are useless.” quote by Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60f/zubin-mehta-7563_art_in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-general_1731655.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60f/zubin-mehta-7563_art_in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-general_1731655.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60f/zubin-mehta-7563_art_in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-general_1731655.png)

> “In this art form, in any art form, generalities are useless.”

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He claims that broad statements are ineffective in any artistic discipline.

**In simple terms:** General statements don’t work in art.

Key Takeaway

Focus on specifics to improve artistic practice.

Themes

art specificity generalities critique craftsmanship

Mood

analytical critical

Type

educational professional

When to use this quote

- Music rehearsals
- visual art critiques
- writing workshops

Key Concepts

Artistic theory creative process precision

Questions to Reflect On

- When are general guidelines helpful?
- How can specificity enhance creativity?

A Different Perspective

May dismiss useful general frameworks.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-form/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Crafts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crafts/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Form Generalities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form-generalities-1434834/) [Generalities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generalities/) [Generalities Useless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generalities-useless-1434833/) [Useless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/useless/)

## Related quotes

> [People look at technology as sometimes an end to things, and it isn't an end in certain cases. In the movie business, the act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-lucas/people-look-at-technology-as-sometimes-an-end-to-things-and-it-isn-t/)

[George Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-lucas/)

> [So how does one go about proving something like this? It's not like being a lawyer, where the goal is to persuade other people;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-lockhart/so-how-does-one-go-about-proving-something-like-this-it-s-not-like/)

[Paul Lockhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-lockhart/)

> [We're one of the last handmade art forms. There's no fast way to make plays. It takes just as long and is just as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-dietz/we-re-one-of-the-last-handmade-art-forms-there-s-no-fast-way-to-make/)

[Steven Dietz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-dietz/)

> [Just as a chemist "isolates" a substance from contaminations that distort his view of its nature and effects, so the work of art purifies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-arnheim/just-as-a-chemist-isolates-a-substance-from-contaminations-that/)

[Rudolf Arnheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-arnheim/)

> [No organism can afford to be conscious of matters with which it could deal at unconscious levels. Broadly, we can afford to sink those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-bateson/no-organism-can-afford-to-be-conscious-of-matters-with-which-it-could/)

[Gregory Bateson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-bateson/)

> [I shall venture to affirm, that there never was a popular religion, which represented the state of departed souls in such a light,as would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/i-shall-venture-to-affirm-that-there-never-was-a-popular-religion/)

[David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/)

> [God is basic Fact. He must not be thought of as a featureless generality. He is the most concrete thing there is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/god-is-basic-fact-he-must-not-be-thought-of-as-a-featureless/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [To the generality of men you cannot give a stronger hint for them to impose upon you than by imposing upon yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-fielding/to-the-generality-of-men-you-cannot-give-a-stronger-hint-for-them-to/)

[Henry Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-fielding/)

> [The person who did most to give to analysis the generality and symmetry which are now its pride, was also the person who made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-whewell/the-person-who-did-most-to-give-to-analysis-the-generality-and/)

[William Whewell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-whewell/)

> [It is good sense applied with diligence to what was at first a mere accident, and which by great application grew to be called,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-good-sense-applied-with-diligence-to-what-was-at-first-a-mere/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Some bolder spirits, indeed, might be expected to despise the cautious moderation of these timid reasoners, and to pronounce decisively, that the Bible was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wilberforce/some-bolder-spirits-indeed-might-be-expected-to-despise-the-cautious/)

[William Wilberforce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wilberforce/)

> [I have the vagary of taking a lively interest in mathematical subjects only where I may anticipate ingenious association of ideas and results recommending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-friedrich-gauss/i-have-the-vagary-of-taking-a-lively-interest-in-mathematical/)

[Carl Friedrich Gauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-friedrich-gauss/)

> [It is very rare, indeed, for men to be wrong in their feelings concerning public misconduct; as rare to be right in their speculations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/it-is-very-rare-indeed-for-men-to-be-wrong-in-their-feelings/)

[Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/)

> [People are mostly sane enough, of course, in the affairs of common life: the getting of food, shelter, and so on. But the moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-stove/people-are-mostly-sane-enough-of-course-in-the-affairs-of-common-life/)

[David Stove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-stove/)

> [The great generalities of the constitution have a content and a significance that vary from age to age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-cardozo/the-great-generalities-of-the-constitution-have-a-content-and-a/)

[Benjamin Cardozo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-cardozo/)

## More by Zubin Mehta

> [I'm a Persian Jew, and we don't speak Hebrew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/i-m-a-persian-jew-and-we-don-t-speak-hebrew/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [I've never said, 'I live for art.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/i-ve-never-said-i-live-for-art/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [...Ori Kam is an outstanding violist who has already played as a soloist with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra twice, much to our delight and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/ori-kam-is-an-outstanding-violist-who-has-already-played-as-a-soloist/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [New York for a long time was a kind of conductor's graveyard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/new-york-for-a-long-time-was-a-kind-of-conductor-s-graveyard/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [Citizens of India, Pakistan, and Kashmir need to come together and make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/citizens-of-india-pakistan-and-kashmir-need-to-come-together-and-make/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [I have been to Kashmir many times, especially with my family, in the '70s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/i-have-been-to-kashmir-many-times-especially-with-my-family-in-the-70s/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [In truth, I became a conductor because deep down I wanted to conduct Brahmss four symphonies and Richard Strausss tone poems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/in-truth-i-became-a-conductor-because-deep-down-i-wanted-to-conduct/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [I'm a pucca Indian. Bombay is my home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/i-m-a-pucca-indian-bombay-is-my-home/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [My tastes are Viennese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/my-tastes-are-viennese/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [Music is the message of peace, and music only brings peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/music-is-the-message-of-peace-and-music-only-brings-peace/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [I am jealous of all those people who live on the shore of Dal Lake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/i-am-jealous-of-all-those-people-who-live-on-the-shore-of-dal-lake/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [Most Arab Israelis speak Hebrew, but not the other way around. It's about time that changed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/most-arab-israelis-speak-hebrew-but-not-the-other-way-around-it-s/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [ Essentially, the \[New York\] Philharmonic is just like any other orchestra-they all have the spirit of kids, and if you scratch away a little… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/essentially-the-new-york-philharmonic-is-just-like-any-other/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [I always look at the work of fashion designers as if they were art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/i-always-look-at-the-work-of-fashion-designers-as-if-they-were-art/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [There are three orchestras in Munich, all world-quality, in a city of one million. Yet every hall is full.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/there-are-three-orchestras-in-munich-all-world-quality-in-a-city-of/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

[Explore all 90 Zubin Mehta quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

## 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": "In this art form, in any art form, generalities are useless.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Zubin Mehta"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-generalities-are-useless/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Art"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-generalities-are-useless/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60f/zubin-mehta-7563_art_in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-general_1731655.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60f/zubin-mehta-7563_art_in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-general_1731655.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60f/zubin-mehta-7563_art_in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-general_1731655.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“In this art form, in any art form, generalities are useless.” — Zubin Mehta",
                "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": "Zubin Mehta",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "In this art form, in any...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-generalities-are-useless/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/in-this-art-form-in-any-art-form-generalities-are-useless/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
