David Small Quotes

Powerful David Small for Daily Growth

About David Small

David Small is an acclaimed American cartoonist, graphic novelist, and illustrator, born in Detroit, Michigan on March 18, 1954. Known for his poignant narratives and visually striking art, Small's work often reflects his personal experiences, making him one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary comics. Small graduated from The University of Michigan with a degree in graphic design. After a brief stint in advertising, he returned to Detroit to work as a cartoonist for the local papers, including the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News. It was during this period that Small's career took a dramatic turn when he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. This life-altering event served as a catalyst for his transition into graphic novel writing, creating works that delve deeply into themes of illness, family, and memory. His most celebrated work, "Stitches," published in 2009, is an autobiographical graphic memoir that explores the impact of his parents' mental illnesses on his childhood. The book was met with critical acclaim, earning him a Robert F. Kennedy Book Award for Best Adult Nonfiction and a Eisner Award for Best Reality-Based Work. Small's other notable works include "The Underneath," a science fiction story about the interconnected lives of residents in an apartment complex, and "I Never Liked You," a darkly humorous graphic novel about family and relationships. Throughout his career, Small has been recognized for his unique artistic style and powerful narratives, earning him a place among the greats of contemporary comics. Today, David Small continues to create thought-provoking work that challenges readers' perceptions and touches on universal themes. His biography serves as a testament to the transformative power of art and the human spirit in overcoming adversity.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak."

This quote emphasizes the importance of clarity and focus in communication or design. By removing extraneous elements, we allow the essential ideas or features to shine through more effectively. Simplifying helps people understand and engage with the subject matter more easily and efficiently. In essence, it's about making the most important parts stand out and speaking to what truly matters.


"To be seen accurately is a kind of grace."

The quote suggests that being truly understood, or "seen accurately," holds an inherent beauty and elegance, often referred to as "grace." It implies that when others perceive us authentically, they appreciate the essence of who we are, fostering a deeper connection and understanding between individuals. This quote encourages self-expression, authenticity, and the pursuit of relationships built on genuine understanding.


"In this world, there are only two emotions: love and fear. All happiness stems from love, all suffering from fear."

This quote by David Small suggests that human experiences can be fundamentally categorized into two primary emotions: love and fear. He implies that all positive feelings stem from love, which creates joy, contentment, and fulfillment, while all negative feelings originate from fear, leading to suffering, anxiety, and distress. Essentially, he posits that the pursuit of happiness in life is rooted in cultivating love and mitigating fear.


"Truth isn't always beautiful, but it's beautiful the way a kaleidoscope is beautiful."

This quote implies that while truth may not inherently be aesthetically pleasing or agreeable, its essence holds a unique and captivating beauty, much like the intricate patterns produced by a kaleidoscope. Just as a kaleidoscope creates mesmerizing designs from seemingly random pieces, truth can reveal a profound and complex order in the world, despite its often challenging nature. The quote encourages us to appreciate truth for its deep and transformative value, rather than just its immediate impact on our senses or emotions.


"Art is never finished, only abandoned."

The quote by David Small suggests that art is an ongoing process rather than a static product. It implies that artists continuously refine and revise their work until they decide to stop, not because it's perfect but because they deem it complete or worthy for sharing with others. This perspective underscores the iterative nature of artistic creation, encouraging artists to never be fully satisfied and to constantly strive for improvement.


I'm not a writer. I know a lot of writers; I know a handful of really excellent, great ones, and I know what they're like. They are in love with language. They're obsessed with it. Even if their thoughts aren't more special than anybody else's, they have a way of putting them into words that makes them sensational.

- David Small

Love, Anybody, Putting, Great Ones

I'm deeply in love with my wife, and she's my best friend, and yet we share different viewpoints of life, which I think is one of the things that holds our marriage together. She came from Texas, and she has an optimistic view of life. I came from Detroit and have a very pessimistic view.

- David Small

Love, I Think, Very, Detroit

Mama had her little cough. Once or twice, some quiet sobbing, out of sight... Or the slamming of kitchen cupboard doors. That was her language.

- David Small

Language, Some, Had, Kitchen

I was in college in the sixties when movies really got good. I'm a fan of Bergman and Hitchcock and Polanski and Antonioni. Those are my gods.

- David Small

College, Gods, Got, Sixties

Things like anatomy and drawing and design and color had pretty much been drop-kicked out of the curriculum in the '70s, when I was studying art, in favor of abstraction and minimalism.

- David Small

Art, Pretty, Been, Curriculum

I've always been interested in a certain kind of sophistication in children's literature. I loved Roald Dahl; I loved the underlying nastiness of some of his - darkness of his tales.

- David Small

Some, Always, Been, Tales

I don't like my parents; I never will. I didn't cry at either of their funerals. I haven't missed them for five seconds. I didn't - you know, our characters were so at odds with one another right from the beginning. But I do understand them now as human beings, with the understanding of an adult.

- David Small

Beginning, Another, Our, Funerals

I just totally do not believe in this sort of Bart Simpson character who infects so much of our literature and film and TV stuff nowadays, these know-it-all kids who seem to understand the hypocrisy of the adult world so thoroughly and can talk about it with such articulateness. That's bunk.

- David Small

TV, About, Nowadays, Simpson

My kids' books all have a darkness to them.

- David Small

Books, Them, Kids, Darkness

To understand somebody else as a human being, I think, is about as close to real forgiveness as one can get.

- David Small

Think, Human Being, I Think, Forgiveness

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