The work of art must seize upon you, wrap you up in itself and carry you away. It is the means by which the artist conveys his passion. It is the current which he puts forth, which sweeps you along in his passion.

240

An artist, under pain of oblivion, must have confidence in himself, and listen only to his real master: Nature.

209

When I've painted a woman's bottom so that I want to touch it, then [the painting] is finished.

166

Shall I tell you what I think are the two qualities of a work of art? First, it must be the indescribable, and second, it must be inimitable.

142

In painting, as in the other arts, there's not a single process, no matter how insignificant, which can be reasonably made into a formula. You come to nature with your theories, and she knocks them all flat.

142

I've been forty years discovering that the queen of all colors is black.

138

If the painter works directly from nature, he ultimately looks for nothing but momentary effects; he does not try to compose, and soon he gets monotonous.

112