“Degas is one of the very few painters who have given the floor its true importance.”

“Nothing is very important, and few things are important at all.”

“You know, the immortality of the soul, free will and all that -- it's all very amusing to talk about up to the age of twenty-two, but not after that. Then one ought to be giving one's mind to having fun without catching the pox, arranging one's life as comfortably as possible, having a few decent drawings on the wall, and above all writing well. That's the important thing: well-made sentences...and then a few metaphors. Yes, a few metaphors. They embellish a man's existence.”

“It is very true. But even a traitor may mend. I have known one who did.”

“The most important imperative to be questioned is the one that tells you to go the the art supply store to be a painter.”

“It's the same story with a few crucial additions; the most important one is you.”