Quote about making simple things complicated and complex things simple
I'm sure I have heard a quote in the past from someone famous (maybe Einstein? maybe not) about how it is easy to make something complicated but extremely difficult to make something simple.
Is there a well-known quote about this?
Thanks
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"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex... It takes a touch of genius --- and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." http://www.alberteinsteinsite.com/quotes/einsteinquotes.html
I'm sure there are more quotes attributed to Einstein than he could ever have spoken. The only related quote that may fit could well have been his; "Things should be a simple as possible but no simpler." It is a great sentiment whether it is his or not.
There is the well-known (by writers) quotation:
I'm sorry this letter is so long. I didn't have time to make it shorter.
This is attributed to many people including (of course) Mark Twain. The original may have been Pascal's:
I didn't have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.
And when Woodrow Wilson was asked how much time it took to prepare a speech, he said:
That depends on the length of the speech,” answered the President. “If it is a ten-minute speech it takes me all of two weeks to prepare it; if it is a half-hour speech it takes me a week; if I can talk as long as I want to it requires no preparation at all. I am ready now.
Most of these are on Quote Investigator