Holland Taylor Quotes

We are living in a world where the individual must learn to command the raw materials of expression. He must not be dependent all the time on the ready-made, the finished product. It's the transferring, the changing of the raw into what is the expression of your own self – the whole joy and satisfaction and frustration of life is built into this.

With art and the work you do, it has to be constantly dictated by what you're feeling and where you want to go with it.

Nobody will stop you from creating. Do it tonight. Do it tomorrow. That is the way to make your soul grow - whether there is a market for it or not! The kick of creation is the act of creating, not anything that happens afterward. I would tell all of you watching this screen: Before you go to bed, write a four line poem. Make it as good as you can. Don't show it to anybody. Put it where nobody will find it. And you will discover that you have your reward.

I don't think you can be taught how to make art. You can be coached, but on a fundamental level you have to figure it out for yourself. You have to learn how your own mind works, figure out your own relationship to the art; you essentially have to invent it completely for yourself.

Everything I make starts very personally.

When you're an artist, all you're trying to do is self-express.

The only thing in life that really gives me any peace is just being lost in the process of creating something, whether it's the film or painting and drawing, which has been a big part of my life, for a long time.

Learn the duty as well as taste the pleasure of original work.

It is important to make your own stuff. Even if you are not an actor, it is important to not stop involving yourself as a creative person.

I feel, as an artist, I should be able to express who I am and the things I come from, and the places I want to also be.

Making art is different for everyone.

I don't think the goal is, 'How big a star did you ever become?' I think the goal is, 'Were you able to express yourself?'

At Sarah Lawrence, I realized that everybody was already what they were going to be. The painters were painting, the writers writing, the dancers dancing. And nobody wore any makeup. The art was uppermost.

I am my own experiment. I am my own work of art.

I think that I've just kind of found my niche, if that makes sense. I still write the same, but I feel like I've found what separates me, and I always try to stay in that when I write. It took me a long time to discover that, so I try to be protective.

I take my craft seriously, of course, but I don't feel the need to always play a certain character or a certain part or persona. I'm not going to cut something out of my life because it's not 'my image.' I want to be open enough that if I love something, I can do it, and it will add to myself as an entertainer.

It is almost impossible to reconcile self expression with the creative act.

Artists today think of everything they do as a work of art. It is important to forget about what you are doing - then a work of art may happen.

I just love the idea of going into a room and creating something by myself.

Joanne' is a progression for me. It was about going into the studio and forgetting that I was famous.

I don't even think about maintaining a relevance. I just think about what do I want to paint, what am I gonna do now, what am I gonna do later.

I think I'm just doing me, my music, my shows, and my stories.

Each time I write, each time the authentic words break through, I am changed. The older order that I was collapses and dies. I lose control. I do not know exactly what words will appear on the page. I follow language. I follow the sound of the words, and I am surprised and transformed by what I record.

It is the individual voice, present to itself, that needs to be heard. We need to hear the process of the musician working on himself. We don't need to hear who is more clever with synthesizers. Our cleverness has created the world we live in, which in many ways, we're sorry about.

From an early age, I never let anyone silence my voice. This steadfast attitude has helped me as an actor and has truly enabled me to explore and evolve the characters I portray on television and film.