I am reminded of an off-hand remark once made by Henri Matisse in which he proposes that truly important artists introduce a great number of new signs into the arts. As an example, Matisse explains how many artists learn how to paint the foliage on trees by repeatedly brushing “33” on the area of the canvas that is suppose to correspond to the leaves of the plant while other, more interesting artists, invent new ways of approaching the same problem of abstraction.
— Sack, Warren. “Painting Theory Machines.” Art and Design. May 1996 (1996): 80-92.
