38 Quotes by Pierre Bonnard

The principal subject is the surface, which has its color, its laws over and above those of object.

It's not a matter of painting life, it's a matter of giving life to painting.

Painting has to get back to its original goal, examining the inner lives of human beings.

What attracted me was less art itself than the artist’s life and all that it meant for me: the idea of creativity and freedom of expression and action. I had been attracted to painting and drawing for a long time, but it was not an irresistible passion; what I wanted, at all costs, was to escape the monotony of life.

Drawing is feeling. Color is an act of reason.

I am just beginning to understand what it is to paint. A painter should have two lives, one in which to learn, and one in which to practice his art.

It’s not a matter of painting life, it’s a matter of giving life to painting.

And after drawing comes composition. A well-composed painting is half done.

What I am after is the first impression – I want to show all one sees on first entering the room – what my eye takes in at first glance.