It is very rarely granted even to Nature herself to produce anything absolutely perfect in every part.

Painting contains a divine force which not only makes absent men present, as friendship is said to do, but moreover makes the dead seem almost alive.

The Arts are learnt by reason and method; they are mastered by practice.

The function of the painter is to render... the visible surface so that at a certain distance... and position it appears... like the body itself.

I will never tire of recommending the custom, practiced by the best architects, of preparing not only drawings and sketches, but also models of wood or any other material. These... enable us to examine... the work as a whole... and, before continuing any further, to estimate the likely trouble and expense.

When I investigate and when I discover that the forces of the heavens and the planets are within ourselves, then truly I seem to be living among the gods.

No art, however minor, demands less than total dedication if you want to excel in it.