"Could we teach taste or genius by rules, they would be no longer taste and genius"

This quote by Joshua Reynolds is a tip that imagination and artistry can not be taught through rules and policies. Taste and genius are qualities that can not be acquired through guideline, but rather through experience and natural talent. Reynolds is recommending that if it were possible to teach taste and genius through rules, then they would no longer be thought about taste and genius. This implies that the qualities of taste and genius are distinct and special, and can not be duplicated through direction. Reynolds is highlighting the value of imagination and artistry, and how it can not be taught through guidelines and regulations. He is recommending that creativity and artistry are qualities that should be established through experience and natural skill. This quote acts as a suggestion that creativity and artistry are special qualities that can not be replicated through instruction.