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John Ruskin Quotes

Art critic

John Ruskin was an influential British art critic, writer, and social critic. Known for his profound insights into art, architecture, and social issues, he had a significant impact on the aesthetics and culture of the Victorian era.

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Famous John Ruskin Quotes

“There is no action so slight or so mean but it may be done to a great purpose, and ennobled thereby.”

May Mean Done Action Purpose

Author:John Ruskin

“Sky is the part of creation in which Nature has done more for the sake of pleasing man, more for the sole and evident purpose of talking to him and teaching him, than in any other of her works, and it is just the part in which we least attend to her.”

Men Done Purpose Talking Sky Teaching Creation Sake Sole Evident Talking To Him

Book:Selections and Essays

Source: Selections and Essays

“There is large difference between indolent impatience of labor and intellectual impatience of delay, large difference between leaving things unfinished because we have more to do or because we are satisfied with what we have done.”

Done Differences Intellectual Labor Leaving Satisfied Delay Impatience Unfinished Thoroughness

Book:Modern Painters: pt. 4. Of many things

Source: Modern Painters: pt. 4. Of many things

“There is rough work to be done, and rough men must do it; there is gentle work to be done, and gentlemen must do it.”

Men Done Work Gentle Gentleman Rough Work To Be Done

Book:The Crown of Wild Olive

Source: The Crown of Wild Olive

“Failure is less attributable to either insufficiency of means or impatience of labours than to a confused understanding of the thing actually to be done.”

Mean Done Understanding Confused Labour Impatience Insufficiency

Book:The seven lamps of architecture

Source: The seven lamps of architecture

“A great thing can only be done by a great person; and they do it without effort.”

Persons Done Effort Greatness Great Things Great Person

Author:John Ruskin

“It is a strange thing how little in general people know about the sky. It is the part of creation in which nature has done more for the sake of pleasing man.”

Men Done Literature Nature Sky Creation Sake

Author:John Ruskin

“I believe the right question to ask, respecting all ornament, is simply this; was it done with enjoyment, was the carver happy while he was about it?”

Believe Done Asks I Believe Enjoyment Ornaments Right Questions Carver

Author:John Ruskin

“And remember, child, that nothing is ever done beautifully, which is done in rivalship; or nobly, which is done in pride.”

Done Pride Rivalry

Author:John Ruskin

“I have not written in vain if I have heretofore done anything towards diminishing the reputation of the Renaissance landscape painting.”

Ifs Done Literature Written Painting Reputation Landscape Vain Renaissance Landscape Painting

Book:The Genius of John Ruskin: Selections from His Writings

Source: The Genius of John Ruskin: Selections from His Writings

“No good is ever done to society by the pictorial representation of its diseases.”

Done Literature Disease Photography Representation Pictorial

Book:Complete Works of John Ruskin

Source: Complete Works of John Ruskin

“Compulsory education... It is a painful, continual, and difficult work; to be done by kindness, by watching, by warning, by precept, and by praise, — but above all — by example.”

Inspirational Done Difficult Education Kindness Teacher Example Praise Painful Warning Education And Teachers Teacher Student Teacher And Student Work To Be Done Parents And Teachers Difficult Work

Author:John Ruskin

“It's unwise to pay too much, but it's worse to pay too little. When you pay too much, you lose a little money - that's all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was bought to do. The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot - it can't be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run, and if you do that you will have enough to pay for something better.”

“The best work never was and never will be done for money.”

Done Humor Work Best Work

Author:John Ruskin

“If a great thing can be done, it can be done easily, but this ease is like the of ease of a tree blossoming after long years of gathering strength.”

Ifs Years Long Done Success Tree Great Things Ease Gathering Blossoming

Author:John Ruskin

“Whenever I did anything wrong, stupid or hard-hearted, and I have done many things that were all three, my mother always said "it is because you were too much indulged."”

Said Hard Done Mother Three Too Much Stupid Stupidity Hearted

Book:England and Its Aesthetes: Biography and Taste

Source: England and Its Aesthetes: Biography and Taste

“Borrowers are nearly always ill-spenders, and it is with lent money that all evil is mainly done and all unjust war protracted.”

War Done Political Evil Politics Money Ill Unjust Borrowers Unjust War

Book:The Crown of Wild Olive

Source: The Crown of Wild Olive

“Let every dawn of morning be to you as the beginning of life, and every setting sun be to you as its close: — then let every one of these short lives leave its sure record of some kindly thing done for others — some goodly strength or knowledge gained for yourselves.”

Done Morning Sun Records Setting Settings Dawn Things Done Short Life Beginning Of Life Knowledge Gained

Author:John Ruskin

“Human work must be done honourably and thoroughly, because we are now Men; whether we ever expect to be angels, or were ever slugs, being practically no matter.”

Men Humans Matter Done Political Angel Slugs

Book:Fors Clavigera

Source: Fors Clavigera

About the Author

Born: February 8, 1819
Died: January 20, 1900
Known for: Art critic
Quotes: 634

Books & Sources

The Genius of John Ruskin: Selections from His WritingsRelated source material

The seven lamps of architectureRelated source material

Modern PaintersRelated source material

Selections from the Writings of John RuskinRelated source material

The Stones of VeniceRelated source material

Selections and EssaysRelated source material

The works of John RuskinRelated source material

Unto this LastRelated source material

On Art and LifeRelated source material

The Crown of Wild OliveRelated source material

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