Leon Battista Alberti Art Quotations

I shall praise those faces which seem to project out of the picture as though they were sculptured, and I shall censure those faces in which I see no art but that of outline.

Perhaps the artist who seeks dignity above all in his 'historia', ought to represent very few figures; for as paucity of words imparts majesty to a prince, provided histhoughts and orders are understood, so the presence of only the strictly necessary numbers of bodies confers dignity on a picture.

What is painting but the act of embracing, by means of art, the surface of the pool?

The greatest work of an artist is the history of a painting.

There is no art which has not had its beginnings in things full of errors. Nothing is at the same time both new and perfect.

The Arts are learnt by reason and method; they are mastered by practice.

I would have artists be convinced that the supreme skill and art in painting consists in knowing how to use black and white... because it is light and shade that make objects appear in relief.

No art, however minor, demands less than total dedication if you want to excel in it.

Beauty: the adjustment of all parts proportionately so that one cannot add or subtract or change without impairing the harmony of the whole.