A primary function of art and thought is to liberate the individual from the tyranny of his culture in the environmental sense and to permit him to stand beyond it in an autonomy of perception and judgment.
Interpretation
Art and thought help individuals escape cultural constraints and express themselves freely.
This quote by Beverly Sills emphasizes the vital role that art and critical thinking play in enabling individuals to break free from societal norms and expectations. By engaging with artistic expression and thoughtful contemplation, a person can attain a unique perspective that allows them to evaluate the world independently, fostering personal autonomy and creative judgment.
In practice
During an art exhibition, to emphasize the importance of personal expression through creativity.
I began by listening to my mother's collection of Amelita Galli-Curci and Lily Pons records, and then was taken (at age eight) to hear Pons at a Met performance of Lakme. It was at that moment that I decided to become an opera star. Not just an opera singer, but an opera star!
I was always the first person in the theater all the time. If it was an eight-o'clock curtain, I was here at five-thirty, and it wasn't that I needed to vocalize, because I was all warmed up. I couldn't wait for it to begin.
I lived through the garbage. I might as well dine on the caviar.
There is no shortcut to anyplace worth going.
I had found a kind of serenity, a new maturity. I didn't feel better or stronger than anyone else but it seemed no longer important whether everyone loved me or not - more important now was for me to love them. Feeling that way turns your whole life around; living becomes the act of giving.
There is only one valuable thing in art: the thing you cannot explain.
If you are going to write, say, fantasy - stop reading fantasy. You've already read too much. Read other things; read westerns, read history, read anything that seems interesting, because if you only read fantasy and then you start to write fantasy, all you're going to do is recycle the same old stuff and move it around a bit.
A writer is a palmist, reading the lines of the planet.
The only writers who have any peace are the ones who don't write. And there are some like that. They wallow in a sea of possibilities. To express a thought, you first have to limit it, and that means kill it. Every word I speak robs me of a thousand others, and every line I write means giving up another.
A true artist is not one who is inspired, but one who inspires others.
There is no reason to design buildings that are more basic and rectilinear, because with concrete you can cover almost any space.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.