Antonio Canova

The true artist must be a poet, a philosopher, and a man of the world.

I strive for an ideal beauty, not a servile imitation of nature.

Sculpture is the art of giving form to the invisible.

The chisel is but a tool; the hand and the mind are the true instruments.

To achieve perfection, one must first understand imperfection.

My aim is to move the soul, not merely to please the eye.

The greatest difficulty lies in making the marble breathe.

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication in art.

I seek to express the ideal, not the real.

The artist must be a perpetual student of nature, but never its slave.

True beauty is found in harmony and proportion.

Every block of marble contains a statue within it, and it is the sculptor's task to discover it.

The artist's hand must be guided by the heart and the mind.

I prefer to err on the side of grace than on the side of force.

The most beautiful forms are those that are most natural.

Art should elevate the spirit and inspire noble sentiments.

The true measure of an artist is not in what he creates, but in what he inspires.

I am but an instrument in the hands of a higher power.

To create beauty, one must first feel it deeply within oneself.

The artist's greatest reward is the joy of creation.