Marlene Dumas's Quotes

I do think that I'm not good at making pretty things. It doesn't come so naturally for me.

I have always been interested in how you can depict suffering without being heavy-handed.

I moved to Holland because I wanted to see American art.

I never learned to ride a bicycle, and it is too late now. I never learned to drive. I never learned to swim.

I think I am probably a lot like my father.

I'm always so sick of myself after a show.

There are these painterly things that happen while I'm working.

I don't go to a psychiatrist. I don't go to a gym. I run away from my accountant, I run away from my dentist. They are all supposed to help you, but I like to stay in bed, where I have a chance to reflect, like Rossellini.

The best works do not necessarily get to auction. I like to draw, so maybe I give you a little drawing. And then eventually it ends up at auction. And then critics say, 'Oh, that's a bad drawing!' Well, I didn't say it was so wonderful.