John Arthur has taught art classes, instructed Master Seminars, written essays, articles and recorded his thoughts in notebooks since childhood. As an ever enthusiastic student of art, John’s passion for the subject cannot help but be translated into his teaching and writing. For beginners, students and professional artists alike, his instruction has provided a wellspring of valuable inspiration for all who come in contact with him. This section of the site will be dedicated to those writings, thoughts and quotes that the artist has collected and shared with others over the years.

(last known formal photo of the artist)

"Everything is important." -N.C. WYETH-

"Trifles make perfection but perfection is no trifle. -MICHEALANGELO-

"If given ruled paper, write the other way. -JUAN RAMON JIMENEZ-

"I paint as a bird sings." -CLAUDE MONET-

"Art should be joy-giving and life enhancing." -PHILLIPS-

"The reluctance to put away childish things may be the requirement of genius. -R. SINKLER-

"Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or doing it better."
-JOHN UPDIKE-

"The master is one that can simultaneously give the effect of simplicity and restraint."
-ANDREW WYETH-

"Imagination is more important than knowledge." -EINSTEIN-

"The artist does not see things as they are, but as he is." -ALFRED TONELLE-

"Art is indeed not the bread but the wine of life." -JEAN PAUL RICHTER-

"It is not the thing you do so much as the way you do it that counts." -SAINT GAUDENS-

"Genius is not a possession of the limited few, but exists in some degree in everyone."
-ROBERT HENRI-

"A great artist takes what he needs." -PICASSO-

"Let the motive for action be in the action itself and not in the result." -N.C. Wyeth-

Is thought on paper.

Is the spontaneous, physical act of Seeing.

Is a direct link between the conscious and subconscious mind- the dream state- and the now.

Is the purest form of art; it describes, in physical terms, the process of thought.

Is the collective memory of the past combined with the response to the immediate.

Is Seeing, not passively observing, and not copying. It is a fresh, new thing from you.

Is a mirror to our minds, reflecting the need of our souls to create.

Is the Assistant, the second-person translator of realities; others, as well as our own.

Is a language created of our own self-made symbols. It may contain a thousand alphabets.

Is the window through which our vision is enlightened, polished, and made keen.

Is the best exercise to develop our short term visual perceptual capacity.

Is the best answer to any artistic question.

Is a two-way periscope from your hand to your eye, from your eye to the world, and back again.

Is a blessing (because of its brevity) to counter the curse of all art . . . . . . Time.

Is the most direct link to Childhood.

Is the best way to see beyond the present reality and into your own.

Is a mirror to your secret soul; a self-discovery of the most direct and profound nature.

Is playing in the field of your imagination; it is the freedom to play within your thoughts.

Is the connective tissue between that which we have seen, and that which we truly See.

Is always a delightful surprise; a look at a new and different world that originates within you.