12 Quotes by Ernst Gombrich

There really is no such thing as art. There are only artists.

Art does not copy nature – it suggests it.

All artistic discoveries are discoveries not of likenesses but of equivalencies which enable us to see reality in terms of an image and an image in terms of reality.

One never finishes learning about art. There are always new things to discover. Great works of art seem to look different every time one stands before them. They seem to be as inexhaustible and unpredictable as real human beings.

Anyone who can handle a needle convincingly can make us see a thread which is not there.

One cannot explain the existence of genius. It is better to enjoy it.

It took some time before the public learned that to appreciate an Impressionist painting one has to step back a few yards, and enjoy the miracle of seeing these puzzling patches suddenly fall into one place and come to life before our eyes.

If you ask me what the world looks like to me, it looks like a painting by Pissarro.

All art is image making and all image making is the creation of substitutes.