Art for Thought

August 17, 2022 (updated September 9, 2022)

Image courtesy of Depositphotos.

Educator and activist Dr. César A. Cruz once said, "Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable." No matter the medium, a work of art that evokes a feeling, elicits an emotional response, or offers social commentary has the most visual impact. I have always had a fondness for quotes and the written word. For my first post, here are some artists reflecting on the creative process and the purpose of art.

"A beautiful body perishes, but a work of art does not."

-Leonardo da Vinci

Leonor Fini (1907-1996), Angel of Anatomy, 1949. Oil on canvas. Private collection. Image courtesy of All Art .

"A picture is a poem without words."

-Horace

Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986), Oriental Poppies, 1927. Oil on canvas, 40 x 30 in. Collection of the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Image courtesy of flickr.

"Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it."

-Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol (1928-1987), Shot Sage Blue Marilyn, 1964. Acrylic and silkscreen ink on linen, 40 x 40 in. Image courtesy of Christie's.

'"Why are there no great women artists?' sounds as ignorant of human geography as the query 'Why are there no Eskimo tennis teams?'''

-Francine du Plessix Gray

Amy Sherald (b. 1973), "Fact was she knew more about them than she knew about herself, having never had the map to discover what she was like," 2015. Oil on canvas, 54 x 42 in. Image courtesy of Art Papers, Atlanta, GA.

"Art is two things: a search for a road and a search for freedom."

-Alice Neel

Alice Neel (1900-1984), Self-Portrait (at age 80), 1980. Oil on canvas, Stretcher: 3 1/4 x 39 3/4 x 1 in. Frame: 57 x 43 x 2 in. Image courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.

"Life beats down and crushes the soul

and art reminds you that you have one."

-Stella Adler

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954), Diego on my Mind (Self-portrait as Tehuana), 1943. Oil on masonite. 29 9/10 x 24 in. Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, AU. Image courtesy of Artsy.

As the English novelist and playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803-1873) said, "the power of the pen is mightier than the sword," the power of the paintbrush is as mighty as the power of the pen. Did any of these quotes or paintings resonate with you? Let me know in the comment section. If you like this post, sharing is caring....