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Brice Marden Quotes

Artist

Brice Marden is an American artist known for his minimalist style and abstract paintings. His works are often inspired by natural elements, featuring simple shapes and colors, and showcasing a serene and introspective aesthetic. Born on October 15, 1938, Marden has had a long and profound impact in the art world.

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All Artist Thinking Art Painter People Abstraction Certain Kind Knows Long

Famous Brice Marden Quotes

“Painters are amongst the priests - worker priests of the cult of man - searching to understand but never know.”

Knows Men Workers Painter Priests Cult

Book:Brice Marden: Recent Paintings and Drawings : [catalogue of an Exhibition], September 23-21 October 1978, The Pace Gallery, New York

Source: Brice Marden: Recent Paintings and Drawings : [catalogue of an Exhibition], September 23-21 October 1978, The Pace Gallery, New York

“I don't remember any dream. All I remember is waking up and feeling that there had been a change while I was sleeping.”

Feelings Dream Remember Sleep Wake Up Waking

Author:Brice Marden

“I love the healthy exchange of information.”

Information Healthy

Author:Brice Marden

“I love the idea of hitchhiking into the city. It was bizarre.”

Ideas Cities Bizarre Hitchhiking

Author:Brice Marden

“Western art has a certain relationship to nature.”

Art Certain Western

Author:Brice Marden

“Western artists stand as humans looking at nature; Asian artists try to be in nature. You become one with nature rather than painting a portrait of it. That's a big shift.”

Trying Humans Bigs Artist Painting Western Portraits Asian One With Nature

Author:Brice Marden

“When you're using a long brush, you have your arm at full length. Basically, it exaggerates the movement of your body. But I always start far away and end up really close.”

Long Ends Body Movement Arms Your Body Length Far Away Brushes

Author:Brice Marden

“I smoke pot when I work. I take a couple of tokes before I start. It just loosens you up.”

Couple Smoke Pot

Author:Brice Marden

“When you're not smoking anymore, you don't have to carry around a pack of cigarettes, a lighter - all this paraphernalia. So you're liberated in a certain sense. It's the same with drinking.”

Certain Drinking Smoking Cigarette Packs Liberated Lighters

Author:Brice Marden

“I respect all artists, just some more than the others. Because it's something that really needs to be done.”

Needs Done Artist

Author:Brice Marden

“Every time I open the paper, there's some symphony orchestra collapsing somewhere in the United States. What the hell is going on? And then you find out that the board members try to run these things as businesses.”

Trying States Running United United States Hell Members Paper Boards Orchestra Symphony Symphony Orchestras Board Members

Author:Brice Marden

“In this kind of super-capitalistic society, everything is turned into money. And one of the great things about art is it isn't worth anything. It's absolutely free. It's going to get made no matter what.”

Kind Art Made Matter Art Is No Matter What Great Things

Author:Brice Marden

“Being an artist is very independent thinking, although there's always going to be a lot of doubt.”

Thinking Artist Doubt Independent Being An Artist Independent Thinking

Author:Brice Marden

“I've always worn a hat when I work. I think it also comes from a picture of Rothko I saw with a painter's hat on.”

Thinking Saws Painter Hats Worn

Author:Brice Marden

“I'm an abstract painter not just for myself, but because I really believe in abstraction.”

Believe Painter Abstract Abstraction

Author:Brice Marden

“I think abstraction is a very rich area. And it is upsetting that people seem to have some fear of it. I'm constantly making these statements about how you should just look at it and react to it on your own; just relax and let go.”

People Thinking Should Looks Seems Rich Letting Go Areas Statements Upset Relax Abstraction

Author:Brice Marden

“I'm much more concerned about what artists think. But as you get older you tend to get much more isolated; you're not out in the bar, having long drunken arguments on the benefits of your work vs. someone else's. It's hard to know how people are looking at it, and you don't get much feedback. The written critical stuff seems to be the feedback, but that's hard to interpret.”

People Thinking Knows Long Hard Seems Artist Stuff Know How Written Benefits Concerned Argument Critical Bars Isolated Feedback

Author:Brice Marden

“Abstraction has always been around, since the drawings in the caves. It exists in all cultures all over the world. I thought for a while that it was going to be the major movement. But people always drift back to realism. I guess there is a certain security in that.”

People World Certain Culture Security Movement Majors Drawing Realism Caves Abstraction

Author:Brice Marden

“I'm a professional artist, that's how I make my living. So I watch the market. There is, it seems to me, a lot of pure financial speculation, and I don't think that's terribly healthy. Though as long as the money is getting back to the artist, I think that's good. I'm very happy younger artists can make money faster than we could. And we were making it faster than a generation before us.”

Thinking Long Seems Artist Watches Generations Healthy Pure Financial Faster Making Money Very Happy Speculation

Author:Brice Marden

“I remember getting out of grad school and coming to New York and not wanting to get a teaching job because I wanted to work on my own, to develop my own ideas. There isn't that time now. Artists are exhibiting while they are still in grad school. There isn't that safety cushion.”

Stills Ideas Wanted School Jobs Remember Artist My Own Teaching New York Safety Cushions Grad Grad School

Author:Brice Marden

“I consider myself lucky to have had wonderful teachers. They expose you to a lot and basically teach you how to paint. I think of my career as a series of lucky incidents.”

Thinking Careers Teach Teacher Wonderful Lucky Series Paint Incidents Wonderful Teacher

Author:Brice Marden

“These days people believe they can go into art and make a living. We didn't have that. The abstract expressionists were older, by the time they even got a show. Now people come right out of school and sell.”

People Believe Art Shows School Sells These Days Abstract

Author:Brice Marden

“You can't say I'm going to become a painter in the same way you say I'm going to become a dentist. Or maybe you can nowadays. But it's an endeavor.”

Way Painter Endeavor Dentist

Author:Brice Marden

“I'm very much involved with Asian art and its theory and practice, mainly Chinese because that was quite sophisticated. I tend to look at that more than I look the Western.”

Looks Art Practice Theory Involved Western Chinese Sophisticated Asian Theory And Practice

Author:Brice Marden

“Holding together a kind of tension. When you see a painting that's really good that's what it's doing.”

Kind Together Painting Tension

Book:Brice Marden: Recent Paintings and Drawings : [catalogue of an Exhibition], September 23-21 October 1978, The Pace Gallery, New York

Source: Brice Marden: Recent Paintings and Drawings : [catalogue of an Exhibition], September 23-21 October 1978, The Pace Gallery, New York

“Remember that an artist's life is an intense search for truth. This search takes many forms. Everyone of these forms demands its own disciplines. I learned and adapted to my search. I expect nothing from you. Question the truth of anything you confront. How does it apply to yourself and the trail you are pursuing?”

Doe Remember Form Life Is Artist Discipline Demand Intense Trails Adapted Search For Truth Expect Nothing

Author:Brice Marden

“The possibilities of thought training are infinite, its consequences eternal, and yet few take the pains to direct their thinking into channels that will do them good, but instead leave all to chance.”

Thinking Pain Chance Possibility Eternal Training Consequence Direct Infinite

Author:Brice Marden

“A painting, you know, it's all dirty material. But it's about transformation. Taking that earth, that heavy earthen kind of thing, turning it into air and light.”

Knows Kind Light Earth Air Painting Materials Transformation Heavy Dirty

Author:Brice Marden

“A work of art is a renewable source of energy.”

Art Energy Source Art Is Works Of Art

Author:Brice Marden

About the Author

Born: October 15, 1938
Known for: Artist
Quotes: 29

Books & Sources

Brice Marden: Recent Paintings and Drawings : [catalogue of an Exhibition], September 23-21 October 1978, The Pace Gallery, New YorkRelated source material

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