Salvador Dali

There is only 1 difference between a madman and me. I am not mad.

Intelligence without ambition is like a bird without wings.

We’ll buy some drugs and watch a band and jump in a river holding hands.

Great art is never produced for its own sake. It is too difficult to be worth the effort.

In the field of art, to be able to have lunch with Kirk Varnedoe is thrilling. I met him at Si and Victoria Newhouse’s dinner one night. Barnett Newman’s widow was there. That’s the part of me that’s a fan. Like when I was a kid and went to the Brooklyn Paramount. Well, my interest has expanded, and it’s not just rock-and-roll.

I believe that all creative people have more than one passion, more than one creative talent.

The Japanese have a wonderful sense of design and a refinement in their art. They try to produce beautiful paintings with the minimum number of strokes.

MoMA is doubling its space, and I decided to raise the money for it.

Good art will speak to you if you give it a chance.

Mother’s taste was eclectic and ranged from the ancient world to the contemporary from Europe to the U.S.

I don’t want to put too many boxes on it because the work speaks louder than words.

Surrealism had a great effect on me because then I realised that the imagery in my mind wasn’t insanity. Surrealism to me is reality.

There is no art without intention.

Art is the only way to run away without leaving home.

Life is tough and if you’re creative, it’s tougher.

One of the things about creativity is you can be in denial about these things. When I found out I had cancer, there were four hours in which I was pounding my head on the marble kitchen top saying, “I can’t believe it, I can’t believe it.” But then I felt as if this little army in uniform was flooding me. They had come to help me fight it. I felt really strong about it after that. It was one of the strongest periods of my life.

If you hold onto the beauty and inspiration and the clarity that is music, you will have an anchor, you will not be too far swayed by what the world is.