Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Ernst Gombrich

Quote by Ernst Gombrich

“All artistic discoveries are discoveries not of likenesses but of equivalencies which enable us to see reality in terms of an image and an image in terms of reality.”

Quote by Ernst Gombrich

Create image

Author

Ernst Gombrich
Ernst Gombrich

Ernst Gombrich was a renowned art historian and writer, known for his contributions to the field of art history and art theory. His works are accessible and widely appreciated by readers. more

You May Also Like

“The photographic enthusiast likes to lure us into a darkened room in order to display his slides on a silver screen. Aided by the adaptability of the eye and by the borrowed light from the intense projector bulb, he can achieve those relationships in brightness that will make us dutifully admire the wonderful autumn tints he photographed on his latest trip. As soon as we look at a print of these photographs by day, the light seems to go out of them. It is one of the miracles of art that the same does not happen there.”

LooksDoeArtLightSeemsHappensEyeOrderRoomsWonderfulAchieveMiraclePhotographScreensLikesIntenseAdmireSilverAutumnPrintDisplaySlidesBorrowedBrightnessAdaptabilityLureBulbsProjectors
Author:Ernst Gombrich
Create image

“Would that the simple maxim, that honesty is the best policy, might be laid to heart; that a sense of the true aim of life might elevate the tone of politics and trade till public and private honor become identical.”

HeartMightTruthSimpleHonestyPolicyHonorAimTradeToneMaximsIdenticalHonesty Is The Best PolicyAim Of Life
Book:At home and abroad: or, Things and thoughts in America and Europe. Edited by Arthur B. Fuller
Create image

“The paintings in our galleries are seen one day in bright sunshine and another day in the dim light of a rainy afternoon, yet they remain the same paintings, ever faithful, ever convincing. To a marvelous extent they carry their own light within. For their truth is not that of a perfect replica, it is the truth of art.”

ArtLightTruthPerfectPaintingTruth IsOne DayFaithfulSunshineAfternoonMarvelousConvincingGalleryRainyAnother DayLight WithinReplica
Author:Ernst Gombrich
Create image

“Even the standard example of ancient nonsense - the debate about angels on pinheads - makes sense once you realize that theologians were not discussing whether five or eighteen would fit, but whether a pin could house a finite or an infinite number.”

HouseRealizingNumbersFiveExampleFitStandardsAngelInfiniteAncientDebateMake SenseNonsenseFiniteTheologianPinsEighteenDiscussing
Book:The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History
Create image