The significance of the ‘Subject’ and More - No. 41

The role of ‘subject’ in painting, center of interest, and picture development.
In response to Joshua

QUESTIONS: In your Longo interview you mention the quote "Subject is nothing", which seems obvious in the limited sense that painters have made great paintings regardless of subject, and in some cases, despite the subject. The painter recognizes that the subject is only some small percent of what the picture conveys, yet for the lay viewer, the subject can be the first thing they see, and the split second that decides if they will care to look more. So
it's hard for me to understand in what sense it is nothing since you also mention subjects that are not appropriate to our art, i.e. political statements, which suggests that it is something.

And

Can you differentiate subject and center of interest?