Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Lawrence Weiner

Quote by Lawrence Weiner

“Genitive is a funny word because it means "from," but it also is the gender in European languages for objects: the masculine, feminine, and neuter. So if you have a genitive present, there's room for everybody to fit in. I just did a project in Vienna about rock, paper, scissor; you change the gender and it simply changes the whole thing. Rock is no longer a male. It doesn't function the same way.”

Quote by Lawrence Weiner

Create image

Author

Lawrence Weiner
Lawrence Weiner

Lawrence Weiner, born on February 10, 1942, is an influential artist known for his conceptual art. more

You May Also Like

“In my work, it's simultaneously realities, instead of parallel. Simultaneous avoids the problem of alternate reality. In parallel reality, there's always a hierarchy, and there doesn't necessarily have to be a hierarchy. When you're in a palace like Blenheim, you're supposed to be in awe - why not be in awe of something different than the stuff they're showing you? It's about finding your own existential place.”

DifferentProblemRealityStuffFindingsSupposed To BeAweWorking ItWhy NotExistentialHierarchyParallelsPalacesSimultaneousAlternate Realities
Author:Lawrence Weiner
Create image

“The concept of who your audience is becomes more important than your site. Sometimes you can be commissioned to do a piece in Strasburg, and it works. Sometimes you're commissioned to do a piece somewhere else and it doesn't work, but then it moves to another city, the people embrace it, and becomes part of them. You just misjudged the needs of the people. Art is about giving people material and things to work with to fulfill whatever needs they have.”

PeopleNeedsGivingArtImportantSometimesMovingCitiesAudiencePiecesMaterialsArt IsConceptsEmbraceSiteSomewhere Else
Author:Lawrence Weiner
Create image

“I'm keeping everything on a human level, but essentially everything in our lives has to be on a human level. Any specification of something by art history doesn't make any sense. The point is, if you have a loving, adorable, supportive mother anywhere in the world and you tell her all of your dreams, all of your aspirations, and the reward you would like, and she understands you, then it's not worth doing.”

IfsWorldHumansArtDreamMotherLevelsOur LivesRewardsYour DreamsAspirationSupportiveAdorableArt HistorySpecifications
Author:Lawrence Weiner
Create image

“Think about it: you've already related it down to something that somebody else can understand. If art relates to something - it's like Picasso, it's like Mondrian - it's not. Art's supposed to be what it is. Using a reference of art history might help for some kind of sales, but it doesn't really help anybody. Art is what it is; it cannot be footnoted, until it enters the world. Then it has a history. Then the footnotes are the history, not the explanation.”

IfsThinkingWorldKindArtHelpingMightArt IsSupposed To BeRelateExplanationRelatedArt HistoryFootnotes
Author:Lawrence Weiner
Create image

“The challenge has always been to wrest emotion out of a [doll's] face that we think of as only having one emotion. It's moving a light, moving my camera; it's just this mental investment that I make, and suddenly, everything changes. Parenthetically, I have to say, I don't particularly like dolls, nor have I ever liked them. That's something I really wanted to get out there right away.”

ThinkingLightWantedFacesMovingChallengesEmotionCamerasInvestmentThings ChangeDolls
Author:Laurie Simmons
Create image