Why shouldn’t art be pretty? There are enough unpleasant things in the world.
An artist must eat sparingly and give up a normal way of life.
"The work of art must seize upon you...carry you away."
I look at a nude. There are myriads of tiny tints. I must find the ones that will make the flesh on my canvas live and quiver.
When I've painted a woman's bottom so that I want to touch it, then [the painting] is finished.
Nothing costs so little, goes so far, and accomplishes so much as a single act of merciful service.