I have always tried to hide my efforts and wished my works to have a light joyousness of springtime which never lets anyone suspect the labors it has cost me.

Quote by Henri Matisse

Topics: Henri Matisse Quotes

In the beginning you must subject yourself to the influence of nature. You must be...

In the beginning you must subject yourself to the influence of nature. You must be...

Cutting into color reminds me of the sculptor's direct carving.

Cutting into color reminds me of the sculptor's direct carving.

I would like to recapture that freshness of vision which is characteristic of extreme youth...

I would like to recapture that freshness of vision which is characteristic of extreme youth...

It has bothered me all my life that I do not paint like everybody else.

It has bothered me all my life that I do not paint like everybody else.

I have been no more than a medium, as it were.

I have been no more than a medium, as it were.

I do not literally paint that table, but the emotion it produces upon me.

I do not literally paint that table, but the emotion it produces upon me.

There is no interruption between my older paintings and my cutouts. Just that with an...

There is no interruption between my older paintings and my cutouts. Just that with an...

The best way to kill time is to work it to death

The best way to kill time is to work it to death

There are always flowers for those who want to see them.

There are always flowers for those who want to see them.

It is only after years of preparation that the young artist should touch color -...

It is only after years of preparation that the young artist should touch color -...

Instinct must be thwarted just as one prunes the branches of a tree so that...

Instinct must be thwarted just as one prunes the branches of a tree so that...

Jazz is rhythm and meaning.

Jazz is rhythm and meaning.

Better late than never is poor consolation for the man who has lost the opportunity...

Better late than never is poor consolation for the man who has lost the opportunity...

I'm growing old, I delight in the past.

I'm growing old, I delight in the past.

Instinct must be thwarted just as one prunes the branches of a tree so that...

Instinct must be thwarted just as one prunes the branches of a tree so that...

There is nothing more difficult for a truly creative painter than to paint a rose,...

There is nothing more difficult for a truly creative painter than to paint a rose,...

Exactitude is not truth.

Exactitude is not truth.

Truth, like the juice of the poppy, in small quantities, calms men; in larger, heats...

Truth, like the juice of the poppy, in small quantities, calms men; in larger, heats...

If you say that the history of the Church is a long succession of scandals,...

If you say that the history of the Church is a long succession of scandals,...

All great truths begin as blasphemies.

All great truths begin as blasphemies.