Mere exactitude, of which photography and moulage [life casting] are the lowest forms, does not inspire feelings.

The main thing is to be moved, to love, to hope, to tremble, to live. Be a man before being an artist!

Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.

Art is contemplation. It is the pleasure of the mind which searches into nature and which there divines the spirit of which nature herself is animated.

The artist must create a spark before he can make a fire and before art is born, the artist must be ready to be consumed by the fire of his own creation.

The more simple we are, the more complete we become.

The work of art is already within the block of marble. I just chop off whatever isn't needed.

Patience is also a form of action.

Love your calling with passion, it is the meaning of your life.

The human body is first and foremost a mirror to the soul and its greatest beauty comes from that.

Art is the pleasure of a spirit that enters nature and discovers that it too has a soul.

You may avoid the risk of a car accident if you avoid driving, but you will lose the joy and freedom of driving.

The path to wholeness starts by loving yourself. It always starts there. If you love yourself, you will do whatever it takes to restore your health and happiness.

I really believe in the power of music.

This is the Hour of Lead- Remembered, if outlived, As freezing persons, recollect the Snow- First-Chill-then Stupor- then the letting go---

During Breaking The Waves, I was on my own in a hotel room. I think I would have been impossible to live with. When you go home, you have to pretend to be the person you are at home.

I've always tried to stay out of the fray and not be an object of controversy.

Fortune does not change men, it unmasks them. —SUZANNE NECKER, WIFE OF JACQUES NECKER, MINISTER OF FINANCE

Just as the child must trust his mother, the white belt must believe in the good will of his instructor. There will be a time for questioning, but for now he must focus and train.

Improvisation has never been my strong point.

A book that furnishes no quotations, is me judice, no book, — it is a plaything.