“I was poorer than anyone I'd ever met. But it was a great time to be a young artist - I remember it as a period of exceptional creative freedom and adventure, when one was regularly presented with works of art unlike anything one had ever seen before.” ArtRememberYoungArtistCreativeAdventurePeriodsMetsWorks Of ArtExceptionalGreat TimesYoung ArtistsCreative Freedom Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“I try to make images that have the immediate presence we take for granted in objects - a chair, a shoe, a book, a Judd - and compose them like sentences.” TryingArtBookObjectsShoesSentencesPainterGrantedChairsTaken For GrantedTaking Things For Granted Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“There is a complete difference between art and the art market. Prices are high now for the simple reason that there are people are willing to pay them. The market dominates the art world today because at the moment collectors call the shots. Like everything else that won't last forever.” PeopleWorldArtReasonMomentsTodayLastsDifferencesSimplePayForeverWillingShotsWorld TodayCollectorsArt World Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“Whatever happens to the art world, art will go on regardless. As for obscurity, it looms just over the horizon beckoning us all. Why worry.” WorldArtHappensWorryGoes OnHorizonObscurityWhatever HappensArt WorldBeckoning Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“'Understanding' art is like having a sense of humour - if you don't have one, no amount of explanation is going to make you laugh.” IfsArtHumorUnderstandingLaughingHumourAmountLaughterArt IsPainterExplanationSense Of HumorMake You LaughLack Of UnderstandingArt Appreciation Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“The art world, of all worlds, has room for everyone.” WorldArtRoomsArt World Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“I have never understood, for instance, why some people see contemporary art as divided between 'painting' and 'conceptual art', as though this represented a genuine division.” PeopleArtPaintingUnderstoodGenuineContemporaryInstanceDivisionDividedContemporary ArtConceptual Art Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“The internet has extended the possibility of making art to more people, and particularly of enabling it to be seen by others. I am sure the internet is having a profound impact on art, particularly those who have grown up with it, but making good art will remain as difficult (and as easy) as it ever was. Having a lasting impact may become more not less difficult.” PeopleMayArtEasyDifficultPossibilityInternetImpactProfoundLastingEnablingGood ArtLasting Impact Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“Art is more to do with observation than invention.” ArtArt IsInventionObservation Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“I think that the exchange is very important. Before I did the exhibition in Shanghai, I was a judge for the John Moores Painting Prize and that was very interesting for me, because some of the judges are Chinese and some are British, and we look at the work together. It was fascinating that most of the time we were in complete agreement, but some of the time we were not. People send their works from all over China. For a foreigner, this gave me a very good picture about what is happening in China and its art today.” PeopleThinkingLooksArtImportantTodayTogetherInterestingPaintingJudgingHappeningsVery GoodChinaBritishChineseFascinatingAgreementWorking TogetherPrizeVery InterestingForeignersExhibitionsShanghai Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“For example, in England, we teach about Expressionism, but it is not the same in England as it is in Germany, because Expressionism is more important in the history of German art. So although it is the same history, the emphasis is different.” ArtImportantDifferentTeachExampleEnglandGermanyEmphasisExpressionism Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“It's just that some things more important for this and less important for that, and this is true regardless the style of the art.” ArtImportantStyle Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“Sometimes we look at a work of art and we immediately think that it is German art, but with some we don't, it's not so obvious.” ThinkingLooksArtSometimesObviousWorks Of Art Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“I don't like the idea of nationalism, but on the other hand, I do see that there is a difference between British art, German art and Chinese art. This is because of the history, because each country has different history and each country reads and teaches that history differently.” ArtIdeasDifferentCountryHandsDifferencesTeachBritishChineseNationalismChinese Art Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“When I was in Wuhan, I went to the art school, which was one of the most important art schools in China, an enormous art school. One of the things that I saw is that the schools are very big and there are so many students. It is very difficult to me to teach creative activity to great numbers of people, because I think you need personal contact with students, you need to speak individually, you need individual contact between teachers and students, you need continuity. To me this is a problem in mass education in every society now.” PeopleThinkingNeedsArtImportantProblemBigsSchoolIndividualSpeakDifficultNumbersTeachCreativeSawsTeacherStudentsActivityMassChinaEnormousContactContinuityArt SchoolTeacher And Student Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“In the period of '60s to the '90s, British art schools were small, and the number of student was small. The personal contact was great.” ArtSchoolNumbersStudentsPeriodsBritishContactArt School Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“There is no doubt when one comes from the West to China one understands pop art as having originally developed as part of Western tradition. There is a historical development, in which things find resonance in different places.” ArtDifferentDoubtDevelopmentTraditionHistoricalWestWesternChinaPopsNo DoubtDifferent PlaceResonancePop Art Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“When I go to China I see many artists whose work reflects on aspects of contemporary popular culture but obviously the history of Western art is not part of their own tradition.” ArtArtistCultureArt IsAspectTraditionWesternChinaContemporaryPopular Culture Author:Michael Craig-Martin
“I think from an artist's point of view, everything in art, in fact everything in the world is available as material.” ThinkingWorldArtFactsArtistViewsMaterialsAvailablePoint Of View Author:Michael Craig-Martin
