Art begins when a man, with a purpose of communicating to other people a feeling he once experienced, calls it up again within himself and expresses it by certain external signs.
Leo TolstoyRead
To say that a work of art is good, but incomprehensible to the majority of men, is the same as saying of some kind of food that it is very good but that most people can't eat it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Art should be accessible and appreciated by everyone, not just a select few.
Tolstoy's quote suggests that the value of a work of art lies in its ability to be understood and enjoyed by the general public. Just as food should be nourishing and palatable for most people, art should not be reserved for an elite few but should resonate and connect with the broader audience. This highlights the importance of accessibility in art and the communal experience it can provide.
Themes
ArtAccessibilityAppreciationPublicValue
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a discussion about inclusivity in art galleries.
More from Leo Tolstoy
All quotes βPierre looked into the sky, into the depths of the retreating, twinkling stars. "And all this is mine, and all this is in me, and all this is me!" thought Pierre. "And all this they've caught and put in a shed and boarded it up!
Leo TolstoyRead
People try to do all sorts of clever and difficult things to improve life instead of doing the simplest, easiest thing-refusing to participate in activities that make life bad.
Leo TolstoyRead
It's too easy to criticize a man when he's out of favour, and to make him shoulder the blame for everybody else's mistakes.
Leo TolstoyRead
Music is the shorthand of emotion. Emotions, which let themselves be described in words with such difficulty, are directly conveyed to man in music, and in that is its power and significance.
Leo TolstoyRead
A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one's neighbor β such is my idea of happiness.
Leo TolstoyRead
Similar quotes
It is godlike ever to think on something beautiful and on something new.
DemocritusRead
Some of my foster families used to send me to the movies to get me out of the house and there I'd sit all day and way into the night. Up in front, there with the screen so big, a little kid all alone, and I loved it. I loved anything that moved up there and I didn't miss anything that happened and there was no popcorn either.
Marilyn MonroeRead
On the floor I am more at ease. I feel nearer, more part of the painting, since this way I can walk around it, work from the four sides and literally be in the painting.
Jackson PollockRead
Write with the door closed, rewrite with the door open. Your stuff starts out being just for you, in other words, but then it goes out. Once you know what the story is and get it right β as right as you can, anyway β it belongs to anyone who wants to read it. Or criticize it.
Stephen KingRead
This is the role of writers: to turn their tears into a story - and perhaps into a prayer.
Elie WieselRead
Poetry helps me understand who I am. It helps me understand the world around me. But above all, what poetry has taught me is the fact that I need to embrace mystery in order to be completely human.
Yusef KomunyakaaRead