All the sorrow, all the bitterness, all the sadness, I forget them and ignore them in the joy of working.

I sometimes have a horrible fear of turning up a canvas of mine. I'm always afraid of finding a monster in place of the precious jewels I thought I had put there!

The subject should be observed more for shape and color than for drawing... precise drawing is dry and hampers the impression of the whole, it destroys all sensations.

It is only by drawing often, drawing everything, drawing incessantly, that one fine day you discover to your surprise that you have rendered something in its true character.

But as I see it, the most corrupt art is the sentimental the art of orange blossoms which make pale women swoon.

Don't be afraid in nature: one must be bold, at the risk of having been deceived and making mistakes.

God takes care of imbeciles, little children and artists.