256 Quotes by Henri Matisse

When I paint green, it doesn't mean grass; when I paint blue, it doesn't mean sky.

A new painting is a unique event, a birth, which enriches the universe as it is grasped by the human mind, by bringing a new form into it.

I don't paint things. I only paint the difference between things.

I never retouch a sketch: I take a canvas the same size, as I may change the composition somewhat. But I always strive to give the same feeling, while carrying it on further.

There's nothing clinically wrong with me, only an emotional imbalance - I pass too quickly from the wildest enthusiasm to the blackest despair.

An artist must never be a prisoner. Prisoner? An artist should never be a prisoner of himself, prisoner of style, prisoner of reputation, prisoner of success, etc.

Don't wait for inspiration. It comes while one is working.

...The more a picture has to give, the greater it is.

With color one obtains an energy that seems to stem from witchcraft.