All art is but imitation of nature. — Seneca · Smartyfair

All art is but imitation of nature.

Seneca4–65 BC · philosopher · Ancient RomeSeneca was a Roman philosopher, playwright, and statesman who served as tutor and later chief advisor to the young Emperor Nero, guiding Roman policy for years.11 quotes

Source foundNatureAncient

In plain words

Every artist is really copying something nature did first.

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Where these words come from

How sure this is: 85% sureThese words were traced back to where they first appeared. That source is listed below.
What turned up: Letters to Lucilius, Letter LXV ("On the First Cause").
Sources checked: en.wikiquote.orgChecked using claude-sonnet-5, 20 August 2026Sourced to Letter LXV

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More from Seneca

For sometimes it is an act of bravery even to live.

Seneca It is a rough road that leads to the heights of greatness.

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More on nature

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.

Lao Tzu Clouds come floating into my life from other days no longer to shed rain or usher storm but to give colour to my sunset sky.

Rabindranath Tagore The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn.

Ralph Waldo Emerson A violent wind does not outlast the morning; a squall of rain does not outlast the day. Such is the course of Nature.

Lao Tzu In wildness is the preservation of the world.

Henry David Thoreau In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.