Jenny Holzer Quotes

Uncommon things must be said in common words, if you would have them to be received in less than a century.

I certainly am interested in accessibility, clarity, and immediacy.

He that will write well in any tongue, must follow this counsel of Aristotle, to speak as the common people do, to think as wise men do: and so should every man understand him, and the judgment of wise men allow him.

In my mind, I'm writing for everybody.

The chief virtue that language can have is clearness, and nothing detracts from it so much as the use of unfamiliar words.

In fairness, I don't think that everyone understands what I say, but I think they understand part of it and part of what the issues are... Just the same way that people like a good painting, I think people really like understanding, knowing about the world.

It's up to the artist to use language that can be understood, not hide it in some private code. Most of these jokers don't even want to use language you and I know or can learn . . . they would rather sneer at us and be smug, because we 'fail' to see what they are driving at. If indeed they are driving at anything--obscurity is usually the refuge of incompetence.

I'd come to realize that all our troubles spring from our failure to use plain, clear-cut language.

A painting has a lot of advantages over other forms of communication. Unlike a movie, you don't have to put it into a machine and turn it on. It's just there every day. It's not limited by the element of time. It's a constant part of the home.

Write in such a way as that you can be readily understood by both the young and the old, by men as well as women, even by children.

People make music to get a reaction. Music is communication.

When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.

I don't like writing - it's so difficult to say what you mean. It's much easier to edit other people's writing and help them say what they mean.

Making noise is easy; making stuff people understand is an easy thing to do.

Words easy to be understood do often hit the mark; when high and learned ones do only pierce the air.

A philosopher once said, 'Half of good philosophy is good grammar.'

The Constitution isn't written in Chinese, Swahili or Sanskrit. It's in plain English.

I think that some works are more accessible than others.

We don't perceive a contradiction between writing books, making films or producing a television program. These days you can't choose how you want to express yourself anymore.

The most important thing is to have something important to say and finding the means to say it.

Somebody once said to me, 'If you want to be understood, don't write fiction.'

Art isn't complete until it's shared.

My favourite writers are always great storytellers, like Bruce Springsteen; I adore Bruce Springsteen. I feel like he doesn't beat around the bush, and he doesn't overcomplicate things. He puts things into layman's terms and tells stories that anyone can understand.

I don't like making things too complicated when writing songs. I want to write in a very easy language that many people will understand.

I try not to obfuscate or to be to obscure or to be too cerebral. I like to work on a visceral, emotional level.