Bruce Nauman quotes

Bruce Nauman is an American sculptor and multidisciplinary artist known for his innovative use of materials and media. His work explores themes of language, body, and perception in contemporary art. He has profoundly influenced generations of artists with his experimental approach and conceptual rigor. Here are 17 of his quotes:

I am really interested in the different ways that language functions... When language begins to break down a little bit, it becomes exciting and communicates in nearly the simplest way that it can function: you are forced to be aware of the sounds and the poetic parts of words. If you deal only with what is known, you'll have redundancy; on the other hand, if you deal only with the unknown, you cannot communicate at all. There is always some combination of the two, and it is how they touch each other that makes communication interesting.

Bruce Nauman

If you really want to do it, you do it. There are no excuses.

Bruce Nauman

I like to use my hands and make things... It might seem pretty stupid or pointless but that doesn't matter... some of the most interesting work is the stuff that starts like that - out of a raw need for activity.

Bruce Nauman

Generalised anger and frustration is something that gets you in the studio, and gets you to work - though it's not necessarily evident in anything that's finished.

Bruce Nauman

And then what makes the work interesting is if you choose the right questions.

Bruce Nauman

The true artist helps the world by revealing mystic truths.

Bruce Nauman

In art, the only one who really knows whether what you've done is honest is the artist.

Bruce Nauman

What I am really concerned about is what art is supposed to be - and can become.

Bruce Nauman

If you choose the wrong questions and you proceed, you still get a result, but it's not interesting.

Bruce Nauman

I don't like to think about being an influence. It's embarrassing.

Bruce Nauman

I think humor is used a lot of the time to keep people from getting too close. Humor side-steps and shifts the meaning.

Bruce Nauman

But if you can find that spot - I suppose it's like running - I used to be a swimmer and swim laps, and you just have to be there with what you're doing.

Bruce Nauman

I'll talk. You'll listen.

Bruce Nauman

But part of the enjoyment I take in it is finding the most efficient way to do it, which doesn't mean the corrections aren't made. I like to have a feeling of the whole task before I start, even if it changes.

Bruce Nauman

In the studio, I don't do a lot of work that requires repetitive activity. I spend a lot of time looking and thinking and then try to find the most efficient way to get what I want, whether it's making a drawing or a sculpture, or casting plaster or whatever.

Bruce Nauman