To be an artist includes much; one must possess many gifts - absolute gifts - which have not been acquired by one's own effort. And, moreover, to succeed, the artist much possess the courageous soul.

This quote is suggesting that to be an artist, a person needs to have certain natural talents, which they haven’t worked for or earned. It also implies that an artist should also have a brave and determined soul, or spirit. In other words, to be an artist, you need to not only have a certain set of skills that you can’t work for, but you must also be creative and determined to succeed.