Man Ray (1890–1976), born Emmanuel Radnitzky in Philadelphia, was a pivotal figure in 20th-century art, particularly known for his contributions to Dadaism and Surrealism. Initially studying architecture, he shifted to the avant-garde art scene in New York City, where he became associated with Marcel Duchamp and Francis Picabia, promoting Dadaism in America. Ray’s photography was groundbreaking, characterized by surreal and experimental techniques like solarization and photograms. His portraits of cultural icons and avant-garde figures captured the spirit of the era. Moving to Paris in the 1920s, he became a central figure in Surrealism, collaborating with Salvador Dalí and André Breton. Ray’s multidisciplinary approach extended to painting, sculpture, and filmmaking, where he continued to challenge artistic norms. His films, like “Le Retour à la Raison” and “Emak-Bakia,” were noted for their abstract visuals. Throughout his career, Ray remained dedicated to pushing artistic boundaries and redefining the nature of art. His legacy as a pioneer of avant-garde photography and filmmaking continues to inspire artists worldwide, cementing his status as one of the most influential artists of the 20th century.

Man Ray Quotes

1. “I do not photograph nature. I photograph my visions.”
— Man Ray

2. “I would photograph an idea rather than an object, a dream rather than an idea.”
— Man Ray

3. “I believe in the relation between photography and music; And thats my inspiration.”
— Man Ray

4. “An original is a creation motivated by desire.”
— Man Ray

5. “There is no progress in art, any more than there is progress in making love.”
— Man Ray

6. “The tricks of today are the truths of tomorrow.”
— Man Ray

7. “Dada cannot live in New York. All New York is dada, and will not tolerate a rival.”
— Man Ray

8. “Reality is fabricated out of desire.”
— Man Ray

9. “I never knew what I was doing until I was done.”
— Man Ray

10. “Nature does not create works of art. It is we, and the faculty of interpretation peculiar to the human mind, that see art.”
— Man Ray

11. “It has never been my object to record my dreams, just the determination to realize them.”
— Man Ray

12. “You don’t ask a writer what typewriter he uses.”
— Man Ray

13. “In the same spirit, when the automobile arrived, there were those that declared the horse to be the most perfect form of locomotion.”
— Man Ray

14. “The complicated engines manufactured by men demand, if one really wants to use them, much calm. Ever since our love for machines replaced the love we used to have for our fellow man, catastrophes proceed to increase.”
— Man Ray

15. “I have been accused of being a joker. But the most successful art to me involves humor.”
— Man Ray

16. “One of the satisfactions of a genius is his will-power and obstinacy.”
— Man Ray

17. “Oh, yes, I was a great retoucher. A retoucher is an esthetic surgeon !”
— Man Ray

18. “When I saw I was under attack from all sides, I knew I was on the right track.”
— Man Ray

19. “A camera alone does not make a picture. To make a picture you need a camera, a photographer and above all a subject. It is the subject that determines the interest of the photograph.”
— Man Ray

20. “Lipstick is the red badge of courage.”
— Man Ray

21. “To create is divine, to reproduce is human.”
— Man Ray

22. “My works were designed to amuse, annoy, bewilder, mystify and inspire reflection.”
— Man Ray

23. “Just as I work with paints, brushes, and canvas, I work with the light, pieces of glass and chemistry.”
— Man Ray

24. “A certain amount of contempt for the material employed to express an idea is indispensable to the purest realization of this idea.”
— Man Ray

25. “Cut out the eye from a photograph of one who has been loved but is seen no more. Attach the eye to the pendulum of a metronome and regulate the weight to suit the tempo desired. Keep going to the limit of endurance. With a hammer well-aimed, try to destroy the whole at a single blow.”
— Man Ray

26. “All critics should be assassinated.”
— Man Ray

27. “Is photography an art? There is no point in trying to find out if it is an art. Art is old-fashioned. We need something else.”
— Man Ray

28. “Speaking of nudes, I have always had a great fondness for this subject, both in my paintings and in my photos, and I must admit, not for purely artistic reasons.”
— Man Ray

29. “The streets are full of admirable craftsmen, but so few practical dreamers.”
— Man Ray

30. “An original is a creation motivated by desire. Any reproduction of an originals motivated be necessity. It is marvelous that we are the only species that creates gratuitous forms. To create is divine, to reproduce is human.”
— Man Ray

31. “If I’d had the nerve, I’d have become a thief or a gangster, but since I didn’t, I became a photographer.”
— Man Ray

32. “I like contradictions. We have never attained the infinite variety and contradictions that exist in nature. Tomorrow I shall contradict myself. That is the one way I have of asserting my liberty, the real liberty one does not find as a member of society.”
— Man Ray

33. “Unconcerned but not indifferent.”
— Man Ray

34. “Quote me as much as you like; as a matter of fact I don’t even mind if you misquote me !”
— Man Ray

35. “A creator needs only one enthusiast to justify him.”
— Man Ray

36. “I photograph the things that I do not wish to paint, the things which already have an existence.”
— Man Ray

37. “Thanks to my effort in the last 40 years, there has been more paper and film wasted.”
— Man Ray

38. “I paint what cannot be photographed, that which comes from the imagination or from dreams, or from an unconscious drive.”
— Man Ray

39. “To me, a painter, if not the most useful, is the least harmful member of our society.”
— Man Ray

40. “I am not going to be dictated to by the size of the camera. I use everything from an 8 x 10 to a 35-mm. But I don’t use these modern cameras which break down all the time !”
— Man Ray

41. “Personally, I have always preferred inspiration to information.”
— Man Ray

42. “If the affairs of the world were put in the hands of the screwball artists, it couldn’t be in a worse state than it is now !”
— Man Ray

43. “An effort impelled by desire must also have an automatic or subconscious energy to aid its realization.”
— Man Ray

44. “I have never painted a recent picture.”
— Man Ray

45. “I paint when I cannot photograph.”
— Man Ray

46. “I am an economic person; I judge the amount of work involved with the amount of worth attained.”
— Man Ray