Cy Twombly Quotes & Sayings

I had my freedom and that was nice — Cy Twombly

Every line is the actual experience with its own unique story. — Cy Twombly

When I work, I work very fast, but preparing to work can take any length of time. — Cy Twombly

And we who have always thought of happiness climbing, would feel the emotion that almost startles when happiness falls. — Cy Twombly

Graffiti is linear, and it's done with a pencil, and it's like writing on walls. — Cy Twombly

I don't work 9 to 5. — Cy Twombly

It's absurd to talk about paintings that you haven't finished. — Cy Twombly

I work in an impatient way. — Cy Twombly

I never really separated painting and literature. — Cy Twombly

Graffiti is usually a protest - ink on walls - or has a reason for being naughty or aggressive. — Cy Twombly

I listed to Tchaikovsky. He is both kitsch and profound. I love that lack of "Good taste." — Cy Twombly

Once I said to my mother: 'You would be happy if I just kept well-dressed and had good manners,' and she said: 'What else is there?' — Cy Twombly

I used to change things in my early paintings to get the nuance or feeling I wanted, but now I plan everything in my head before I do it. — Cy Twombly

Virginia is a good start for Italy. — Cy Twombly

I look at a lot of artists. I'm inspired by - I suppose I shouldn't say 'inspired,' but it's not really influenced. I am inspired. Art comes from art. — Cy Twombly

White paint is my marble. — Cy Twombly

I work in waves, because I'm impatient. Because of a certain physicality, of lack of breath from standing. It has to be done and I do take liberties I wouldn't have taken before. — Cy Twombly

I would've liked to have been Poussin, if I'd had a choice, in another time. — Cy Twombly

My parents were from New England. It's very funny, but when I grew up, you always had to say, 'Yes, ma'am' and 'Yes, sir.' — Cy Twombly

I love my sculptures, and I was lucky I had them for 50 years because no one would look at them, and I really liked having them around. — Cy Twombly

Paint is something that I use with my hands and do all those tactile things. I really don't like oil because you can't get back into it, or you make a mess. It's not my favourite thing ... pencil is more my medium than wet paint. — Cy Twombly

I'm not an abstractionist completely. — Cy Twombly

To my mind, one does not put oneself in place of the past; one only adds a new link. — Cy Twombly

It's instinctive in a certain kind of painting ... It's like a nervous system. It's not described, it's happening. The feeling is going on with the task. The line is the feeling, from a soft thing, a dreamy thing, to something hard, something arid, something lonely, something ending, something beginning. — Cy Twombly

The Mediterranean is always just white, white, white. — Cy Twombly

I have my pace and way of living, and I'm not looking for something. — Cy Twombly

I was brought up to think you don't talk about yourself. — Cy Twombly

I sit for two or three hours and then in 15 minutes I can do a painting, but that's part of it. You have to get ready and decide to jump up and do it; you build yourself up psychologically, and so painting has no time for brush. Brush is boring, you give it and all of a sudden it's dry, you have to go. Before you cut the thought, you know? — Cy Twombly

I hate roses. Don't you? It's all right if you can hide them in a cutting garden, but I think a rose garden is the height of ick. — Cy Twombly

I swear if I had to do this over again, I would just do the paintings and never show them. — Cy Twombly