The arts have a development which comes not only from the individual but also from a whole acquired force, the civilization which precedes us. One cannot do just anything. A talented artist cannot do whatever he pleases. If he only used his gifts, he would not exist. We are not the masters of what we produce. It is imposed on us.

When a painting is finished, it's like a new born child, and the artist himself must have time for understanding. How then do you expect an amateur to understand that which the artist dos not yet comprehend.

Derive happiness in oneself from a good day's work, from illuminating the fog that surrounds us.

I don't know whether I believe in God or not. I think, really, I'm some sort of Buddhist. But the essential thing is to put oneself in a frame of mind which is close to that of prayer.

When an artist or student draws a nude figure with painstaking care, the result is drawing, and not emotion.

The portrait is one of the most curious art forms. It demands special qualities in the artist, and an almost total kinship with the model.

You want to paint? First of all you must cut off your tongue because your decision takes away from you the right to express yourself with anything but your brush.