The actual tragedies of life bear no relation to one's preconceived ideas. In the event, one is always bewildered by their simplicity, their grandeur of design, and by that element of the bizzare which seems inherent in them.

—Jean Cocteau

wonder life simplicity tragedy design

About Jean Cocteau

Portrait of Jean Cocteau

Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau (UK: KOK-toh, US: kok-TOH; French: [ʒɑ̃ mɔʁis øʒɛn klemɑ̃ kɔkto]; 5 July 1889 – 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, screenwriter, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost avant-garde artists of the 20th century and highly...

More quotations from Jean Cocteau

Art is a marriage of the conscious and the unconscious.

—Jean Cocteau

An original artist is unable to copy. So he has only to copy in order to be original.

—Jean Cocteau

Art is not a pastime but a priesthood.

—Jean Cocteau

I believe in luck: how else can you explain the success of those you dislike?

—Jean Cocteau

The worst tragedy for a poet is to be admired through being misunderstood.

—Jean Cocteau

More quotations tagged with “design”

Form follows function.

—Louis Sullivan

design form function

It's really hard to design products by focus groups. A lot of times, people don't know what they want until you show it to them.

In most people's vocabularies, design means veneer. It's interior decorating. It's the fabric of the curtains of the sofa. But to me, nothing could be further from the meaning of design. Design is the fundamental soul of a human-made creation that ends up expressing itself in successive outer layers of the product or service.

Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.

Design can be art. Design can be aesthetics. Design is so simple, that's why it is so complicated.

History

25 Jan 2014 Added