Joseph Albo Quotes
Joseph Albo was a Spanish Jewish philosopher and the author of the Sefer ha-Ikkarim, the Book of Principles, the most widely read Jewish philosophical work in Iberia in the generation before the expulsion. Drawing on Maimonides, Crescas, and his teacher Hasdai Crescas, he organized Jewish religious belief around three roots: the existence of God, revelation, and reward. The quotes below are attributed to Joseph Albo, organized by topic.
Browse Joseph Albo by topic
Joseph Albo on God
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Attributed to Joseph Albo:
“There are three roots of religion: God, revelation, and reward.”
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Attributed to Joseph Albo:
“True religion combines reason and tradition.”
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Attributed to Joseph Albo:
“Faith requires inquiry, not blind assent.”
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Attributed to Joseph Albo:
“The wise believer holds reason and revelation together.”
Joseph Albo on Justice
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Attributed to Joseph Albo:
“Divine law perfects what natural and human law leave incomplete.”
Joseph Albo on Knowledge
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“Quote c. 1949, when Albers started his 'Homage to the Square' series of paintings”
Every perception of colour is an illusion.. ..we do not see colours as they really are. In our perception they alter one another. -
“I want color and form to have contradictorily functions.”
Quote from: 'Albers Paints a Picture' Elaine de Kooning , Art News 49, November 1950, p. 57; as quoted in Abstract Expressionist Painting in America , W.C, Seitz, Cambridge Massachusetts, 1983, p. 67 -
“In order to use color effectively it is necessary to recognize that color deceives continually.”
Quoted in: Faber Birren (1976) Color Perception in Art. p. 20
Joseph Albo on Mind
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“Every perception of colour is an illusion.. ..we do not see colours as they really are. In our perception they alter one another.”
Quoted in: Abstract Art , Anna Moszynska, Thames and Hudson 1990, p. 147 | Quote c. 1949, when Albers started his 'Homage to the Square' series of paintings
Joseph Albo on Nature
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“The concern of the artist is with the discrepancy between physical fact and psychological effect.”
Quote from: 'Albers Paints a Picture' Elaine de Kooning , Art News 49, November 1950, p. 40; as quoted in Abstract Expressionist Painting in America , W.C, Seitz, Cambridge Massachusetts, 1983, p. 67 -
“For me, abstraction is real, probably more real than nature. I'll go further and say that abstraction is nearer my heart. I prefer to see with closed eyes.”
Quoted in: Arts/Canada, Vol. 23 (1966), p. 46