“It’s so fine and yet so terrible to stand in front of a blank canvas.” – Paul Cezanne

“You know, if one paints someone’s portrait, one should not know him if possible.” – Otto Dix Portraits and Paradoxes: The Art of Not Knowing

“The rose and the thorn, and sorrow and gladness are linked together.” – Saadi Life’s Contrasts: Embracing the Roses and Thorns of Existence

“The beauty one can find in art is one of the pitifully few real and lasting products of human endeavor.” – J. Paul Getty The Curiously Undefined Beauty of Art: A Love Letter to the Ephemeral

“Art cannot result from sophisticated, frivolous, or superficial effects.” – Hans Hofmann The Art of Depth: Why Superficial Brushstrokes Won’t Cut It

“What’s a butterfly garden without butterflies?” – Roy Rogers The Case of the Missing Butterflies: A Garden Mystery

“One marked feature of the people, both high and low, is a love for flowers.” – Robert Fortune Blossoms and Beyond: The Universal Love Affair with Flowers

“To be interested solely in technique would be a very superficial thing to me.” – Andrew Wyeth The Art of Technique: A Love Letter to Substance

“I know that if odour were visible, as colour is, I’d see the summer garden in rainbow clouds.” – Robert Bridges A Whiff of Imagination: The Scent of Summer Gardens

“People who think about art as an investment are pathetic.” – Walter Annenberg The Art of Not Being a Pathetic Investor: Why Viewing Art as Currency is a Missed Brushstroke