I mean by a picture a beautiful romantic dream of something that never was, never will be - in a light better than any light that ever shone - in a land no one can define, or remember, only desire
Edward Burne-JonesRead
The more materialistic science becomes, the more angels shall I paint. Their wings are my protest in favor of the immortality of the soul.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses a desire to affirm spiritual beliefs in response to the increasing materialism of science.
In this quote, Edward Burne-Jones contrasts the growing materialistic nature of science with his artistic expression of angels, symbolizing the soul's immortality. By painting angels, he indicates a protest against the reduction of human existence to mere physicality, suggesting that art can serve as a bridge to the spiritual realms often neglected by scientific discourse.
Themes
MaterialismScienceAngelsSoulImmortalityArtProtest
In practice
Example use cases
An artist might quote this during an interview to discuss their inspiration.
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