Yayoi Kusama via the BBC
If you are someone questioning if a career in art is right for you, or already in the industry and in need of some words of wisdom … Read on to find inspiring quotes from ten successful artists, about what art and being an artist means to them.
● “Art is like a lover whom you run away from but who comes back and picks you up.” Tracey Emin ●
● “Making art, good art, is always a struggle. It can make you happy when you pull it off. There’s no better feeling. It’s beauteous. But it’s always about hard work and inspiration and sweat and good ideas.” Damien Hirst ●
● “Art to me is a humanitarian act and I believe that there is a responsibility that art should somehow be able to effect mankind, to make the word a better place.” Jeff Koons ●
● “I wanted to become an artist because it meant endless possibilities. Art was a way of reinventing myself.” Sam Taylor-Wood ●
● “I love painting so much that nothing else matters.” Yayoi Kusama ●
● “I’ve been absolutely terrified every moment of my life – and I’ve never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.” Georgia O’Keeffe ●
● “Art is a guaranty of sanity. That is the most important thing I have said.” Louise Bourgeois ●
● “It is a great happiness when men’s professions and their inclinations accord.” Sir Francis Bacon ●
● “My hands were too soft… I had to find some special occupation, some kind of work that would not force me to turn away from the sky and the stars, that would allow me to discover the meaning of life.” Marc Chagall ●
● “Artists can do whatever they want!” Marina Abramovic ●