Beauty always takes place in the particular, and if there are no particulars, the chances of seeing it go down
Elaine ScarryRead
You discover how confounding the world is when you try to draw it. You look at a car, and you try to see its car-ness, and you’re like an immigrant to your own world. You don’t have to travel to encounter weirdness. You wake up to it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the complexity of the world and our perception of it through art.
Shaun Tan's quote reflects on the challenges artists face in perceiving and representing reality. It suggests that even familiar objects, like a car, can seem foreign and bizarre when examined closely, illustrating how art can reveal the strangeness and beauty in the everyday world. The act of drawing becomes a journey of discovery, emphasizing that the unusual and confounding elements of life are ever-present, waiting to be explored through creativity.
Themes
ArtPerceptionCreativityWorldStrangeness
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the role of art in society, one might use this quote to illustrate how creativity changes our perspective.
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