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Peter Greenaway Quotes

Powerful Peter Greenaway for Daily Growth

About Peter Greenaway

Peter Greenaway (born April 10, 1942) is a renowned British filmmaker, artist, and architectural theorist, known for his intellectually challenging and visually stunning films that blend art history, literature, and erudite themes. Born in London, Greenaway grew up in a family that encouraged intellectual curiosity. He studied at the University of Oxford, where he received his Bachelor's degree in architecture and later earned a Master's degree in the history of art at Cambridge University. These academic foundations have significantly influenced his work, with many of his films delving into intricate narratives involving art, science, and philosophy. Greenaway began his career as an architect, but soon transitioned to filmmaking. His directorial debut came with "The Falls" in 1980, a complex narrative exploring themes of time, mortality, and sexuality. This was followed by other notable works such as "The Draughtsman's Contract" (1982), which combines art history, eroticism, and political intrigue; "A Zed & Two Noughts" (1985); and the epic historical drama "The Belly of an Architect" (1987). In the 1990s, Greenaway ventured into operatic filmmaking with works like "Eisenstein in Guanajuato" (2015) and the acclaimed "Tulse Luper Suitcases" series. These films showcase his unique storytelling style, characterized by intricate plotlines, visual symmetry, and meticulous attention to detail. Throughout his career, Greenaway has been honored with numerous awards, including a BAFTA Fellowship in 2014 for his outstanding contribution to film. His work continues to push boundaries and provoke thought, making him one of the most influential figures in contemporary art cinema.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Knowledge is not in books, it's in ideas."

This quote by Peter Greenaway emphasizes that knowledge doesn't solely reside within physical books; instead, it exists in ideas. These ideas can be found throughout various forms of media, experiences, conversations, and personal insights. In essence, the implication is that knowledge should not be limited to a static source such as a book, but rather, it is dynamic and multifaceted, constantly evolving through human thought and interaction.

"The art world doesn't have any rules, only customs."

Peter Greenaway's quote underscores the distinction between traditional norms (customs) and rigid regulations (rules) in the realm of art. It suggests that while there may be prevailing practices or expectations for how art should be created and perceived, these customs are not set in stone. In essence, it implies that creativity in art is limitless and that artists can break free from conventional norms to explore new forms of expression.

"Cinema is a machine for lying. And I like to lie."

Peter Greenaway's quote suggests that cinema, as a storytelling medium, often involves the crafting of narratives, which by their very nature can be seen as 'lies'. However, these lies are purposefully constructed for artistic expression, entertainment, or exploration of themes. Greenaway embraces this deceptive aspect of filmmaking, seeing it as an integral part of cinema's power to captivate audiences and evoke powerful emotions.

"Truth is the first casualty in the creation of art."

This quote by Peter Greenaway suggests that artistic expression often transcends strict adherence to factual truth, as artists have the creative liberty to mold reality according to their vision. By implying that "truth" is the first sacrifice made in the artistic process, he emphasizes that art often derives its power from its ability to challenge, reinterpret, or even fabricate reality for emotional impact, thought-provoking discourse, and aesthetic beauty.

"Art is the most intense mode of attention."

This quote by Peter Greenaway suggests that art, in all its forms, demands and rewards a heightened level of focus and engagement from both the creator and the observer. Art, whether it's painting, music, literature, or any other creative expression, invites us to immerse ourselves deeply in the experience, fostering a state of intense concentration and mindfulness. In this mode of attention, we are fully present, appreciating and interpreting the nuances and layers that art presents, which can lead to profound personal growth and emotional understanding.

Try this experiment: Pick a famous movie - 'Casablanca,' say - and summarize the plot in one sentence. Is that plot you just described the thing you remember most about it? Doubtful. Narrative is a necessary cement, but it disappears from memory.

- Peter Greenaway

Memory, Movie, About, Cement

The Sistine Chapel is an extraordinary work of education - it lays out all the early books of the Bible.

- Peter Greenaway

Bible, Extraordinary, Books, Lays

Thanks to secondary education and the Internet, we're all knowledgeable now - if knowledge means the accumulation of facts. Curators are those who know how to maneuver around that knowledge.

- Peter Greenaway

Education, Facts, Means, Secondary

Anybody who writes a diary insists it must be read by someone else.

- Peter Greenaway

Someone, Diary, Read, Writes

As for critics, one mediocre writer is more valuable than ten good critics. They are like haughty, barren spinsters lodged in a maternity ward.

- Peter Greenaway

More, Like, Ward, Haughty

I suppose I am gently cynical about notions of who we think we are, but I certainly don't hate my fellow man. I think my cinema, although it might often deal with death and decay, is highly celebratory.

- Peter Greenaway

Death, Deal, I Think, Gently

We have more than enough deodorised, over-the-top, sentimental cinema. Let's try to bring a little human intelligence into things. It can be very rewarding.

- Peter Greenaway

More, Rewarding, Very, Sentimental

Some people would say again that my attitudes are cold and cerebral; I suppose if you're thinking about American sentimental movies, I suppose they would be.

- Peter Greenaway

Some, Again, Attitudes, Sentimental

If you think about it, most cinema is built along 19th-century models. You would hardly think that the cinema had discovered James Joyce sometimes.

- Peter Greenaway

Think, Discovered, Models, Hardly

Most people are visually illiterate. Most people don't understand images: they don't understand how to interpret them or how to manufacture them.

- Peter Greenaway

How, Most, Manufacture, Interpret

I think my films are always quite self-reflexive and always question 'why am I doing this, is this the right way to do it, what is cinema for, does it have a purpose?'

- Peter Greenaway

Think, Always, Films, Right Way

I think that every artist dreams of renewing the forms which came before, but I think very few can be considered to have achieved that. We are all dwarves standing upon the shoulders of the giants who preceded us, and I think we must never forget that. After all, even iconoclasts only exist with respect to that which they destroy.

- Peter Greenaway

Shoulders, I Think, Very, Giants

Cinema ceases to be passive and becomes active: you, the audience, are now, in some senses, in charge of the filmmaking process. You have all got mobile phones, you have all got cam recorders, and you've all got laptops, so you're all filmmakers.

- Peter Greenaway

Some, Senses, Phones, Cam

In a world where we can all be our own filmmakers, the old elites are disappearing and there is no desire to look at somebody else's dream anymore because you can go off and make your own.

- Peter Greenaway

Desire, Own, Old, Elites

I always think that art is one of the most wonderful exciting curious ways to learn. I have no worries or apologies about art being used as a teaching medium.

- Peter Greenaway

Art, Think, Always, Apology

Religion is there to say, 'Hey, you don't have to worry - there's an afterlife.'

- Peter Greenaway

Worry, Say, Afterlife, Hey

We all know that we're going to die, but we don't know when. That's not a blessing, that's a curse.

- Peter Greenaway

Die, Going, Curse, Blessing

It's very difficult to understand, but I'm looking for a nonnarrative, multiscreen, present-tense cinema. Narrative is an artifact created by us. It does not exist at all in nature; it is a construct made by us, and I wonder whether we need the narrative anymore.

- Peter Greenaway

Anymore, Very, Construct, I Wonder

I think that films or indeed any art work should be made in a way that they are infinitely viewable; so that you could go back to it time and time again, not necessarily immediately but over a space of time, and see new things in it, or new ways of looking at it.

- Peter Greenaway

Back, I Think, Infinitely, Time And Time

English culture is highly literary-based.

- Peter Greenaway

Culture, English, Highly

Cinema, which demands suspension of disbelief, is an increasingly naive proposition.

- Peter Greenaway

Cinema, Which, Increasingly, Disbelief

I believe there's no such thing as history; there's only historians, and in English, we've got this word 'his'tory, but what about her story? So that, in the end, the history of the world would be a history of every single one of its members, but of course, you could never get to grips with that.

- Peter Greenaway

About, Grips, The History Of, In The End

Whether you're Godard or Almodovar or Scorsese, it's text, text, text. Everything begins with the text, and this is a source of great anguish to me. So please let cinema get on with doing what it does best, which is expressing ideas in visual terms.

- Peter Greenaway

Doing, Expressing, Scorsese, Anguish

I'm a Darwinian.

- Peter Greenaway

Darwinian

It's a big criticism of Greenaway films that they are far too interested in formalism and not enough interested in notions of emotional content. It's a criticism I can fully understand from a public that has been brought up by Hollywood movies that demand intense emotional rapport.

- Peter Greenaway

Big, Been, Brought, Notions

If you want to tell stories, be a writer, not a filmmaker.

- Peter Greenaway

Want, Tell, Stories, Filmmaker

I believe that cinema died on the 31 September 1983 when the zapper, or the remote control, was introduced into the living rooms of the world.

- Peter Greenaway

Control, Living, Rooms, September

I think there is no future whatsoever in 3D. It does nothing to the grammar and syntax or vocabulary of cinema. And you get fed up with it in exactly 3 minutes.

- Peter Greenaway

Think, I Think, Whatsoever, Fed Up

All religions have always hated females.

- Peter Greenaway

Religions, Always, Females, All Religions

I can't think of anyone who has done anything remotely useful after the age of 80.

- Peter Greenaway

Think, Anyone, After, Useful

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