The true, prescriptive artist strives after artistic truth; the lawless artist, following blind instinct, after an appearance of naturalness. The one leads to the highest peaks of art, the other to its lowest depths.

He who serves the public is a poor animal; he worries himself to death and no one thanks him for it.

Art is in itself noble; that is why the artist has no fear of what is common. This, indeed, is already ennobled when he takes it up.

The rich want good wine, the poor, plenty of wine

People always fancy that we must become old to become wise; but, in truth, as years advance, it is hard to keep ourselves as wise as we were.

What we agree with leaves us inactive, but contradiction makes us productive.

Everything in the world may be endured except continual prosperity.