Marlene Dumas Quotes

Talent seduces us into interpretation. My sister could draw wonderfully, but she would never have hit upon the idea of becoming a painter. I never had that extreme talent.

I can't draw a straight line to save my life. I just can't draw.

I was never a good artist.

I would go to sketch groups and draw. I really enjoyed the subject matter, but I wasn't good at it.

I would sometimes sit in a crowded restaurant, and say, 'You know, I'm the only person in this restaurant who can't draw.'

Who knows, maybe I am simply a talented architect?

I was always pretty good at designing things.

But I'm not an artist. Maybe an artist with a small a.

I don't know why my pictures come out looking so good. I just don't get it.

I started making art during high school but thought I lacked the talent to become a true artist.

There is the same difference between talent and genius that there is between a stone mason and a sculptor

All men are creative but few are artists.

What men are among the other formations of the earth, artists are among men.

Every single time I step into the studio, I say, 'Can I still do this? Do I still have it? Have I ever had it?' I suppose there's a good amount of self-loathing that goes into any form of artisanship.

I have never been much of a painter.

There is nothing new in art except talent.

Art is something you can't teach, but you can inspire it.

The expression of beauty is in direct ratio to the power of conception the artist has acquired.

I think I always knew that I would do something with art because it was the one thing that I knew I was really good at.

Being an artist doesn't mean that you're a good artist. That was the bargain I first made with myself: I'd say, I'm an artist, but I'm not really very good.

I was never a skilled artist or anything like that - never a rebel.

If I were to have a dream job, it would probably be a poet. Then again, I don't think I'm a very good poet!

I have admired David Bromley's work for years. He possesses such a wild and vivid imagination and really sees the beauty in everything.

I think that, to be an artist, you have to have a big enough ego to believe that people out in the world want to see what you think is a good idea. And if you don't have that sense of ego, then the minute that idea goes into the world, self-doubt kicks in.

I do believe everyone on this earth is an artist - some people more than others. But I do believe we are all artists in a certain way. We all have unique abilities. There are people who are meant to make it their life, and that is a different kind of person who would choose to be on that path.