When I go to farms or little towns, I am always surprised at the discontent I find. And New York, too often, has looked across the sea toward Europe. And all of us who turn our eyes away from what we have are missing life.

Without thinking too much about it in specific terms, I was showing the America I knew and observed to others who might not have noticed. My fundamental purpose is to interpret the typical American. I am a story teller.

The view of life I communicate in my pictures excludes the sordid and ugly. I paint life as I would like it to be.

If a picture wasn't going very well, I'd put a puppy in it.

The secret to so many artists living so long is that every painting is a new adventure. So, you see, they're always looking ahead to something new and exciting. The secret is not to look back.

The story is the first thing and the last thing.

I'll never have enough time to paint all the pictures I'd like to.