David Rockefeller Quotes

Whatever you do, if you do it hard enough you'll enjoy it. The important thing is to work and work hard.

Philanthropy is involved with basic innovations that transform society, not simply maintaining the status quo or filling basic social needs that were formerly the province of the public sector.

I was born into wealth and there was nothing I could do about it. It was there like food or air.

Bilderberger Meeting: The world is now more sophisticated and prepared to march towards a world government ...

Mother liked beauty wherever she found it, and she found it in many different places, both in nature and in contemporary art. And that's where they pretty much parted company. Father ... anything that was abstract would to him automatically be not very good.

The conventional notions of art have changed, and a lot of things done today are considered works of art that would have been rejected in the past.

Courting Peggy McGrath provided me with a very pleasant diversion and eventually with the most important relationship of my life.

I learned more from my mother than from all the art historians and curators who have informed me about technical aspects of art history and art appreciation over the years.

Populists and isolationists ignore the tangible benefits that have resulted from our active international role during the past half-century.

I owe much to mother. She had an expert's understanding, but also approached art emotionally.

I think I am basically a happy person.

It is true that I am often startled and even angered and repulsed by the strange directions and provocative content of new forms that seem to pop up every few months.

Mother's interest in contemporary American artists emerged during the 1920s.

I hope the Guggenheim plan will be revived.

You know, gentlemen, that I do not owe any personal income tax. But nevertheless, I send a small check, now and then, to the Internal Revenue Service out of the kindness of my heart.

Father was the eldest son and the heir apparent, and he set the standard for being a Rockefeller very high, so every achievement was taken for granted and perfection was the norm.

The role of a museum of modern art is to make a good selection and identify what we believe to be the coming movements, and that requires taste.

I never kept a diary, but I wrote detailed notes of my travels.

The Japanese banks are not having an easy time as they once had.

I am never angry, although sometimes distressed.

They decided to establish a museum of modern art where works by contemporary artists would be shown. Mother was viewed as a very progressive person, and not everybody liked the paintings she bought.

Whatever the price of the Chinese Revolution, it has obviously succeeded not only in producing more efficient and dedicated administration, but also in fostering high morale and community of purpose. The social experiment in China under Chairman Mao's leadership is one of the most important and successful in human history.

Mother's taste was eclectic and ranged from the ancient world to the contemporary from Europe to the U.S.

I am convinced that material things can contribute a lot to making one's life pleasant, but, basically, if you do not have very good friends and relatives who matter to you, life will be really empty and sad and material things cease to be important.

Somebody has to take governments' place, and business seems to me to be a logical entity to do it.

This present window of opportunity, during which a truly peaceful and interdependent world order might be built, will not be open for too long - We are on the verge of a global transformation. All we need is the right major crisis and the nations will accept the New World Order.

Some even believe we (the Rockefeller family) are part of a secret cabal working against the best interests of the United States, characterizing my family and me as 'internationalists' and of conspiring with others around the world to build a more integrated global political and economic structure - one world, if you will. If that's the charge, I stand guilty, and I am proud of it.

I think of art as the highest level of creativity. To me, it is one of the greatest sources of enjoyment.

There have been people.. ever since I've had any kind of position in the world.. who have accused me of being ruler of the world. I have to say that I think for the large part, I would have to decide to describe them as crack pots. It makes no sense whatsoever, and isn't true, and won't be true, and to raise it as a serious issue seems to me to be irresponsible.

I believe that government is the servant of the people and not their master.

I suspect that many corporations have begun to understand that they have an important role to play in the lives of their communities, and that allocating funds to support local groups helps them discharge that function and also burnish their image.

A museum has to renew its collection to be alive, but that does not mean we give on important old works.

I think that the best hope for peace and prosperity in the world is greater cooperation among nations, which in turn will be produced if both our governments and the people of our countries travel more and get to know each other better.

Successful charitable fund-raising has much in common with managing a business: It requires leadership, persistence, and creativity.

When I see something I like, I buy it, but I do not look for it madly.

As children we recognized that we belonged to an unusual, even exceptional, family, but the effect was different on each of us.

Much corporate giving is charitable in nature rather than philanthropic.

My congratulations on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the October Revolution.

The Japanese have a wonderful sense of design and a refinement in their art. They try to produce beautiful paintings with the minimum number of strokes.

The Christian ethic played an essential part in my upbringing.

Everything is in place - after 500 years - to build a true 'new world' in the Western Hemisphere ... And what happens if we don't pass NAFTA? I truly don't think that 'criminal' would be too strong a word for rejecting NAFTA.

By a museum, I assume you mean an institution dedicated to the events of Sept. 11 and the aftermath. If that is done with sensitivity, I think it would be most appropriate.