50 Artistic Orson Welles Quotes: Unveiling the Genius of a Creative Mastermind

Welcome, fellow art enthusiasts, to a journey that will unravel the brilliance of one of the greatest creative minds in history! Orson Welles, the visionary filmmaker, actor, and playwright, left an indelible mark on the world of art with his unparalleled talent and innovative ideas. In this blog, we'll be delving into 50 of Orson Welles' most artistic and inspiring quotes, shedding light on the wisdom and wit of this cinematic genius. From his iconic work in “Citizen Kane” to his captivating radio broadcasts, Welles was a maestro who stirred emotions, challenged conventions, and etched his name in the annals of artistic greatness. So, let's buckle up and embark on this exhilarating ride through the mind of a master storyteller!

It was a stormy Halloween night back in 1938, when a radio broadcast had listeners across America gripped with fear. “War of the Worlds,” presented by none other than Orson Welles, was a groundbreaking and artistic endeavor that showcased Welles' ability to captivate audiences with his voice alone. The nation, believing a real alien invasion was underway, plunged into panic and chaos, proving the immense power of storytelling. This was just the beginning of Welles' artistic prowess that would later revolutionize cinema and redefine the boundaries of creative expression. Whether it was his intense portrayal of Charles Foster Kane or his audacious cinematographic techniques, Orson Welles dared to break the rules and pioneered a new era of artistic brilliance.

“A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.”
“I started at the top and worked my way down.”
“The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.”
“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.”
“I passionately hate the idea of being with it. I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.”
“The best thing commercially, which is the worst artistically, by and large, is the most successful.”
“I have always been more interested in experiment, than in accomplishment.”
“I have a great love and respect for art, but I don't think art is what it's all about.”
“I don't say we all ought to misbehave, but we ought to look as if we could.”
“I don't believe in learning from other people's pictures. I think you should learn from your own interior vision of things.”
“A long-playing full shot is what always separates the men from the boys. Anybody can make movies with a pair of scissors and a two-inch lens.”
“I have the terrible feeling that, because I am wearing a white beard and am sitting in the back of the theatre, you expect me to tell you the truth about something. These are the cheap seats, not Mount Sinai.”
“Only through our love and friendship can we create the illusion for the moment that we're not alone.”
“I don't believe in accidents. There are only encounters in history. There are no accidents.”
“The essential is to excite the spectators. If that means playing Hamlet on a flying trapeze or in an aquarium, you do it.”
“In Italy, for thirty years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed. They produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, five hundred years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.”
“I don't pray because I don't want to bore God.”
“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.”
“A good artist should be isolated. If he isn't isolated, something is wrong.”
“I have the soul of a poet and the body of a sinner.”
“The enemy of society is middle class and the enemy of life is middle age.”
“I passionately hate the idea of being with it, I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.”
“I'm not an optimist. I'm a very serious possibilist. It's a new category where we take emotion and heart and intellect and we kind of mix it together.”
“Create your own visual style… let it be unique for yourself and yet identifiable for others.”
“A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.”
“Nobody who takes on anything big and tough can afford to be modest.”
“I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best.”
“I'm interested in everything. And that keeps me going.”
“The director is simply the audience. So the terrible burden of the director is to take the place of that yawning vacuum, to be the audience and to select from what happens during the day which movement shall be a disaster and which a gala night.”
“If there hadn't been women, we'd still be squatting in a cave eating raw meat, because we made civilization in order to impress our girlfriends.”
“I don't pray because I don't want to bore God.”
“I don't say we all ought to misbehave, but we ought to look as if we could.”
“I think it's a great tragedy that the cinema doesn't have two, three, four, five Orson Welles.”
“I started at the top and worked my way down.”
“I passionately hate the idea of being with it. I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.”
“The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.”
“I have always been more interested in experiment, than in accomplishment.”
“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.”
“The best thing commercially, which is the worst artistically, by and large, is the most successful.”
“Only through our love and friendship can we create the illusion for the moment that we're not alone.”
“I don't believe in accidents. There are only encounters in history. There are no accidents.”
“The essential is to excite the spectators. If that means playing Hamlet on a flying trapeze or in an aquarium, you do it.”
“In Italy, for thirty years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed. They produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, five hundred years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.”
“I don't pray because I don't want to bore God.”
“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.”
“A good artist should be isolated. If he isn't isolated, something is wrong.”
“I have the soul of a poet and the body of a sinner.”
“The enemy of society is middle class and the enemy of life is middle age.”
“I passionately hate the idea of being with it, I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.”
“I'm not an optimist. I'm a very serious possibilist. It's a new category where we take emotion and heart and intellect and we kind of mix it together.”

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Chris Ventura

Writer & Editor for Ventured. Interests include: Golf | Building Businesses | Trying to find great pizza wherever I am

50 Artistic Orson Welles Quotes: Unveiling the Genius of a Creative Mastermind

“A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.”

“I started at the top and worked my way down.”

“The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.”

“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.”

“I passionately hate the idea of being with it. I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.”

“The best thing commercially, which is the worst artistically, by and large, is the most successful.”

“I have always been more interested in experiment, than in accomplishment.”

“I have a great love and respect for art, but I don't think art is what it's all about.”

“I don't say we all ought to misbehave, but we ought to look as if we could.”

“I don't believe in learning from other people's pictures. I think you should learn from your own interior vision of things.”

“A long-playing full shot is what always separates the men from the boys. Anybody can make movies with a pair of scissors and a two-inch lens.”

“I have the terrible feeling that, because I am wearing a white beard and am sitting in the back of the theatre, you expect me to tell you the truth about something. These are the cheap seats, not Mount Sinai.”

“Only through our love and friendship can we create the illusion for the moment that we're not alone.”

“I don't believe in accidents. There are only encounters in history. There are no accidents.”

“The essential is to excite the spectators. If that means playing Hamlet on a flying trapeze or in an aquarium, you do it.”

“In Italy, for thirty years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed. They produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, five hundred years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.”

“I don't pray because I don't want to bore God.”

“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.”

“A good artist should be isolated. If he isn't isolated, something is wrong.”

“I have the soul of a poet and the body of a sinner.”

“The enemy of society is middle class and the enemy of life is middle age.”

“I passionately hate the idea of being with it, I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.”

“I'm not an optimist. I'm a very serious possibilist. It's a new category where we take emotion and heart and intellect and we kind of mix it together.”

“Create your own visual style… let it be unique for yourself and yet identifiable for others.”

“A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.”

“Nobody who takes on anything big and tough can afford to be modest.”

“I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best.”

“I'm interested in everything. And that keeps me going.”

“The director is simply the audience. So the terrible burden of the director is to take the place of that yawning vacuum, to be the audience and to select from what happens during the day which movement shall be a disaster and which a gala night.”

“If there hadn't been women, we'd still be squatting in a cave eating raw meat, because we made civilization in order to impress our girlfriends.”

“I don't pray because I don't want to bore God.”

“I don't say we all ought to misbehave, but we ought to look as if we could.”

“I think it's a great tragedy that the cinema doesn't have two, three, four, five Orson Welles.”

“I started at the top and worked my way down.”

“I passionately hate the idea of being with it. I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.”

“The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.”

“I have always been more interested in experiment, than in accomplishment.”

“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.”

“The best thing commercially, which is the worst artistically, by and large, is the most successful.”

“Only through our love and friendship can we create the illusion for the moment that we're not alone.”

“I don't believe in accidents. There are only encounters in history. There are no accidents.”

“The essential is to excite the spectators. If that means playing Hamlet on a flying trapeze or in an aquarium, you do it.”

“In Italy, for thirty years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed. They produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, five hundred years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.”

“I don't pray because I don't want to bore God.”

“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.”

“A good artist should be isolated. If he isn't isolated, something is wrong.”

“I have the soul of a poet and the body of a sinner.”

“The enemy of society is middle class and the enemy of life is middle age.”

“I passionately hate the idea of being with it, I think an artist has always to be out of step with his time.”

“I'm not an optimist. I'm a very serious possibilist. It's a new category where we take emotion and heart and intellect and we kind of mix it together.”

Chris Ventura

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