How do I put meaning in my art, how do I even make a “meaning”?

[Alex_that_is_me]

I’m in an IB art class and I have the last draft made, and I’m ready to move on and make it final piece so if can turn it in. I explained to my teacher what I needed to make it and everything. And she then asked what my meaning behind it was.

I told her that my piece represents the new age, how buildings and other things will look since the future adults are much more artsy and stuff and that I think we’ll make like the cool cityscape with pyramid/triangular buildings and they’ll have cool patterns and lights. And she asked why is the future generation artsy. And I just stumbled.

Well, I guess they’ll be artsy because look at what we’re doing now. And she then told me that I don’t have to worry about the deadline and that I have a vague understanding of meaning.

Please help. I don’t understand.

[cookieroach]

I'm not sure what your teacher meant, but maybe she was asking about your reason for creating that piece. Basically: do you have anything you want to say with it? Why did you want to create it? Or is it something you created because it was a cool concept?

[cherrystark]

I'm with @cookyroach

I've never fully understood why a lot of artists expect a full monologue about the meaning behind their art. I know I generally don't think that much about it when I do visual art. I only ascribe "meaning" to a piece if something inspires the piece like a friend, family member, or another work of art.

If your teacher is requiring you to be able to explain your work, I'd vote for you to improvise. Make something up off the top of your head. If it sounds artsy enough, people won't notice.

[LCT_m_a_d]

Well, I guess they’ll be artsy because look at what we’re doing now.

Can you clarify what you meant... in relation to the teachers question?

[therosesword]

Oh, this is something that drives me nuts and I remember (writing wise) having an argument with a teacher once about the meaning of a book. When I told her my opinion (which is what she asked for) she said I was wrong and told me what the author meant. I asked her how she knew that as he'd been dead for almost 70 years. I got detention.

Anyway... below is a photo of a painting that I own that I dearly love. I bought it from the artist who had a kiosk in a local mall. I paid him a certain amount once a week (I wasn't working at the time). I would stop by with a cup of coffee and my payment and we would chat.

One day while we were there a man and a woman walked by and saw the painting (with a little "sold" sign on it). The woman who said she'd taken an art appreciation and understanding class launched ito the meaning of this painting. It was all about the abortion issue which was the shuttlecock and the nun taking notes and a "fallen" one hiding in a doorway.

It was quite a story.

After they left I asked the artist if that was the meaning. His response was: "I was driving past this convent a couple months ago and the nuns were playing badminton and I thought it would make a nice painting."

Your work doesn't have to have meaning. Sometimes it can be something pretty or fun. I bought the painting because it made me smile and years later it still makes me smile. I guess you could say that was his unconscious meaning... something to make someone smile.

I realize this doesn't help you but... it is an example of how the beholder is going to put their own meaning into it. that even happens with writers. I've had arguments with people about what I've written when they tell me what I wrote and I say no, that's wrong and they actually say I just don't realize it. Everyone has their own agenda.

[therosesword]

The more esoteric they can get the better. Also ascribe some sort of epiphanal (is that even a word?) event that lead to it.

I loved messing with teachers.

[NickRowler]

Sometimes people make art because they want to make something cool or cute. However most of the time, teachers don't like this as an answer. They want people to put a dealing meaning into their art. Like, what motivated you to create your piece? Is this a future you think will happen or a future you are hoping for? Is this based off a news story you read? Do you think the growing interest in art is due to things like social media? Etc.

Sometimes you might have to just wing it and say something that sounds inspiring just to impress them.

[pencilinpain]

Well, I guess they’ll be artsy because look at what we’re doing now.

The piece you're describing seems to express some political point of view. Your point
of view. I don't think you have a vague understanding. All you need is to elaborate.

[Alex_that_is_me]

Like. Look at the art and all the talent everyone has. It’s so appalling and the older adults today didn’t have all that when they were younger. There are 5 year olds playing violin. And tons of young artists that doing well. It’s just I see the future going to be full of talented kids who are going to amazing things. Like make cool buildings.

[LCT_m_a_d]

I like it,
so what visual elements of the building did you use to convey that the building are the result of talented people?
As opposed to better and more expensive resources or one talented person telling everyone how to make cool buildings and people mindlessly following the blueprint.

[Alex_that_is_me]

I guess not a lot of repetitive patterns. But also, not everyone is going to be an architect when they grow up so some of them might be by one person. I’m thinking of taking this “meaning” that I made and adding more to it to BS my way through. Since, the deadline is next week, and even though the teacher said not to worry about it, that’s not how deadlines work.

[DokiDokiTsuna]

IB Art alumna here! And for once, I'm not going to talk about how much the class sucks! ;9

I think what the teacher means is a theme...an underlying thought or a message.

From your description, it sounds like what your piece 'represents' is literally what you put there...I mean, if you drew a bunch of futuristic buildings, and when asked what it means, you say that it represents all the futuristic buildings we'll have in the future...what did you say that isn't already apparent...?

Personally, I don't think this is a fault. I'm another one of those artists who doesn't look for meanings; I just like to draw cool things and play with fun colors and techniques. If you ask me what my art 'means' all I can tell you is that it means I was enjoying myself. Once upon a time this was accepted as a valid reason to do art...somehow that shifted over the 20th century. But I digress...

My advice would be thus: BS it. Make up some kind of underlying theme that you can apply to all your art- the idealism we have about the future, perhaps- and go with that whenever you're asked. Even if it's a blatant lie, as long as it makes some kind of sense and you can talk/write about it at length if you have to. That's how I made it through the IB program as a whole, pretty much~

[therosesword]

There have been child prodigies in all forms of art long before Mozart and long before today, the beauty today is the internet where we can find them faster

The other beauty of the internet is that you can communicate with people of all ages to connect, encourage and learn from... and also teach.

I'd love to see some of your futuristic buildings, I've always loved the stuff from the 1920's that showed what they thought future buildings would be like but mostly Brutalism architecture has always been the best.

This is one of my absolute favorite: GEISEL LIBRARY BY WILLIAM PEREIRA. 1970, SAN DIEGO, CA.

Write hard, write true.

[doomerC]

Let me throw you a couple curveballs:

1) The meaning is in the piece itself, duh. If the artist wanted to convey a meaning that can be formulated in a string of sentences alone, then they would've just written it down instead. The synopsis of a book or a description of a painting are as good as conveying and interpreting the 'meaning' of the piece as a restaurant menu is at satisfying your hunger.

2) 'Meaning' does not have to be formulated as some ham-fisted statement or pestering narrative. A simple affirmation of a certain aesthetic ideal; a sharply captured mood; or a chronic of a time conveyed through images of contemporary interiors and daily use items - all of those require observation, not interpretation; the meaning is as simple as asking the viewer to look at what the artist sees and ponder, dig their own self to find an appreciation for what the piece conveys.

Next time they ask you about meaning, just DM me and i'll link you my favorite youtube guides on how to round kick a mothafucka for being silly, muy tai style.

[darthmongoose]

Unpopular opinion: I kinda think your teacher has a point and is trying to make you think about your subconscious choices to make you a better artist.
When we draw things without thinking, we put in our subconscious biases, ideals and politics in without thinking. ie. When asked to draw "a doctor" a lot of people will draw a middle aged white man in a lab coat. In this case, you drew your vision of a utopian society and you made it decorative and artistic, and your reasons were probably:

• You believe that an advanced society would value aesthetics because you see technological progress and aesthetic progress as things that go hand-in-hand.
• When you imagine a good place to live, you imagine one that is aesthetically beautiful and believe that's a value cultures should strive towards.
• You want to believe in a bright future of progress in both science and art and you put that vision in your piece.

You might think this is the obvious conclusion for how a utopian society would look, but if you look at depictions of them throughout history, you'll find everyone values different things. Like say, how the modernists imagined a "perfect city", they believed in maximum space efficiency and utility, so everything is little boxes. They thought putting everyone into a square, grey box was fairness, progress. Pyramids and triangles are not as space efficient for architecture as boxes, so your statement by filling your city with shapes like that is that a good society should value aesthetics over practicality to at least some extent.

Your teacher probably could have put a bit more work into prompting you towards what she wanted you to learn from this rather than being so vague, but I think that's what she wanted; for you to think about your decisions to better understand yourself and your values so you can talk about them, do research and develop your work.

[rajillustration]

It sounds more that your teacher is asking about worldbuilding than "meaning" necessarily. If you are drawing some concept art of a future society, you do have to think about why and how they would build the way that they build. So more than just "It looks neat" but have like a reason that the city planner in this future scenario did it like this. What is their tech? Are they living in a utopia or is there some sort of oppression going on? And you don't need to go super deep--you can always borrow from futuristic genres that have already done that work for you like Solar Punk or Cyberpunk, but just make sure you can back up your worldbuilding.