Rei Kawakubo Quotes

So at a time in which the media give the public everything it wants and desires, maybe art should adopt a much more aggressive attitude towards the public. I myself am very much inclined to take this position.

The frustrating part of being an artist is that I can do a whole interview, and all most people are going to see is the headlines. As artists, we should be able to write our own headlines.

You can't be both a writer and a politician, at least not a good writer. A writer must always tell the truth as he sees it. And the politician must never give the game away.

The creator gives no heed to the critic unless he becomes a barren inventor.

I don't want the world to give me anything for my books except money enough to save me from the temptation to write only for money.

Don't give me songs, give me something to sing about!

I try to cast really good actors and give them a chance to do their very best work, give them as much time and space as they need.

I love a character that gives me a chance to grow and do something different.

Donald Trump is not intimidated by the media, and he's not frightened by them, and in fact he loves toying with them. You know, while they're sitting there wringing their hands and taking things so seriously and it's the end of the world, Trump is laughing and having the greatest time.

Spending money on art has always been frowned upon in this country - even earlier, when my and others' paintings cost almost nothing. Something is always more important. The people in charge are always peddling reasons that others seem to accept. Those who don't drink and aren't crazy, or who don't attract attention with how they behave in public, aren't noticed in art.

The mind can make substance, and people planets of its own with beings brighter than have been, and give a breath to forms which can outlive all flesh.

If you're wandering the streets, talking in gibberish, nobody ever asks you to change anything about your art because there's no context for people to look at what you do.

It isn't up to the painter to define the symbols. Otherwise it would be better if he wrote them out in so many words! The public who look at the picture must interpret the symbols as they understand them.

If a film is very clever and well-written, that's what gives you freedom as a director. Part of the freedom in directing, for me, is that I'm also the camera operator. That's the place where things are less rigid, where I can adjust as I go along.

I think, as the writer, you're always going to mourn something [left out of a film]. But you also just want to know there's a good reason for it being left out. On the whole, you want to give something to somebody creative. The worst thing you can do is say, "Here, be creative, but do it like I want you to do it." I was always very mindful of that.

In England it is enough for a man to try and produce any serious, beautiful work to lose all his rights as a citizen.

I've done quite a few movies, I generally can feel that I'm not right for the role or a general fear if I can pull it off, and him giving that "tag" so to speak gave me the confidence. Like that Miles Davis line, "Don't worry about mistakes, there aren't any." Once you are the part, you're the guy, so you can't not be the guy because you're it.

The greatest respect an artist can pay to music is to give it life.

A lot of people thought I got famous as a studio artist, then decided to cash in on it. But it actually was just a matter of survival for many years, and I felt it was really important for me to be able to say whatever I wanted with my street art and fine art.

It's tough to make music and make it your own, and not have somebody call it something you don't agree with but can't control. Sometimes the press doesn't realize how much power they have and how they can shape somebody's life. I think there's a lot of people just trying to make music and get their art out there, and their heads get f**ked by the press calling them this or calling them that.

I don't want to go to a foreign country and get lumped into that genre. I'm just looking at the bigger picture. This K-pop title might be good for now, but looking ahead it could hold me back, like a prison of sort. I'm a little wary about that.

The director works as an interpretive artist, but he's still an artist, so you also have to give him room to create and to put his vision of the play or his translation or interpretation of the material on the stage.

I always feel when you work with an artist and whenever I work with a really good photographer, I try to give him or her their own artistic freedom because that's the way you get the best work or at least the most interesting work.

"Painters and poets," you say, "have always had an equal license in bold invention." We know; we claim the liberty for ourselves and in turn we give it to others.

I really love that I'm giving myself the opportunity finally to not have the pressure of every single song you do having to be "political" or whatever. I'm just making what I wanna make.