Art is the method of levitation, in order to separate one's self from enslavement by the earth. The earth demands servitude from us, menial tasks, earthy tasks, every day, every hour, and only at this moment at which we discard the servitude and enter the world of the spirit through music or painting or writing are we free.

As quoted in Sunbeams : A Book of Quotations (1990) by Sy Safransky, p. 137