Buffy Sainte-Marie Quotes

I never know what I'm going to put on the canvas. The canvas paints itself. I'm just the middleman.

It's really easy to project this whole ideology of what being an artiste is, and I'm just not down with intellectualizing it. I just think, if you feel like doing something, then do it.

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.

When I put my brush to canvas, I never know what I'm going to paint. It's like when you're walking down the street with your hands in your pockets, humming a tune, you don't know what you'll be humming five minutes from now.

The most important thing is to keep creating and following my inklings as they come into being and acting on them.

When you write, don't say, "I'm going to write a poem." That attitude will freeze you right away. Sit down with the least expectation of yourself; say, "I am free to write the worst junk in the world."

I'm kind of lucky in the fact that I can take something that's in my head and write it down, or I can listen to a piece of music that somebody else has written and try to tap into what the music's saying and just kind of follow that, you know. I mean, nine times out of 10, I'm just kind of following where the music takes me.

I write songs, and I sing them. I never formulated a plan; I can't tell anyone else how to do this. But it feels right, so I just kind of enjoy it and get on with it.

I think the idea of art kills creativity.

I never have a plan of what I am going to draw.

I don't know what the secret is when I am writing it - it really is a surprise to me.

The artist discards all theories, both his own and those of others. He forgets everything when he is in front of his canvas.

When I was in art college, I would be painting, and I would create something on a canvas that was actually quite attractive. But if I got frightened and tried to protect that, that canvas would die.

The creative process is a process of surrender, not control.

I'm definitely using different parts of myself, but I think when it comes down to words and melodies, I can't really force anything too much.

I never question what to do, it tells me what to do. The photographs make themselves with my help.

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 don't make judgments about my own work, and I don't analyze it; I just let it happen. That applies to everything I've done.

You can't ever create defensively. You just have to create the next thing that really speaks to you.

The way I did the first album... the way I wrote 'Church'... was just to trust my instincts with the music and let it kind of do what it does.

I really like writing poetry and lyrics because it's one thing where I give up control. I don't feel like I need to be in control of it. I just sort of let it happen, and then I know when it's done. I know when it's finished.

You can't slot a time and a space and think 'ok now it's time to sit and compose.' It just doesn't work like that for me.

Don't think about making art.

I just like being creative, whatever way I have to do it.

You know a trillion times more about art than me. But I’ve learned that it isn’t necessary to know all that much. You just make what you wanna see, right? It’s a game, right? It’s like being paid for dreaming.