The masterpiece should appear as the flower to the painter - perfect in its bud as in its bloom - with no reason to explain its presence - no mission to fulfill - a joy to the artist, a delusion to the philanthropist - a puzzle to the botanist - an accident of sentiment and alliteration to the literary man.

Can't a person be born where they want to be born?

People will forgive anything but beauty and talent. So I am doubly unpardonable.

I can't tell you if genius is hereditary, because heaven has granted me no offspring.

It is for the artist... in portrait painting to put on canvas something more than the face the model wears for that one day; to paint the man, in short, as well as his features.

The vast majority of English folk cannot and will not consider a picture as a picture, apart from any story which it may be supposed to tell.

Nature is very rarely right, to such an extent even, that it might almost be said that nature is usually wrong.