"I've been forty years discovering that the queen of all colors is black."

"There is nothing more difficult for a truly creative painter than to paint a rose, because before he can do so, he has first to forget all the roses that were ever painted."

"What I dream of is an art of balance, of purity and serenity devoid of troubling or depressing subject matter - a soothing, calming influence on the mind, something like a good armchair which provides…"

"The effort to combine painting with sculpture has always interested me."

"I think that art must not be a disagreeable thing. There is enough unhappiness in life to turn one towards the joy."