The French artist Pierre Auguste Renoir suffered from rheumatism. This made painting (which he did in a chair) particularly painful. One day a friend arrived while he was working. Noting Renoir's obvious discomfort, the friend asked him why he continued to torture himself. The artist looked at him for a moment before explaining: "The pain passes, but the beauty remains."
Sources
Herbert Prochnow, Speakers' Treasury, p. 162
