The best of artists has no conception that the marble alone does not contain within itself.

This saying is commonly attributed to Michelangelo in the context of his sculptural practice and his oft-reported belief that the figure already exists within the stone, with the sculptor’s task being to “release” it. The line circulates in English largely through later literary mediation rather than a securely documented remark by Michelangelo in a dated letter or contract. It is frequently linked (sometimes loosely) to Renaissance discussions of artistic “idea” versus material, and to Michelangelo’s reputation for carving directly and for speaking of sculpture as an art of uncovering forms latent in marble.

The line expresses Michelangelo’s famous sculptural credo: the form is already latent within the stone, and the artist’s task is to discover and release it rather than impose an arbitrary design. It elevates artistic making into an act of perception and restraint—genius lies in recognizing what the material “wants” and removing only what obscures the figure. The statement also implies humility before nature (or divine creation): even the greatest artist cannot conceive anything that is not, in some sense, already present in the marble’s potential. In modern terms, it anticipates ideas of “truth to materials” and the notion that creativity is as much uncovering as inventing.