Understanding a work of art

Is there a limit?

It's very pretty hard to define, although it doesn't mean that's impossible. Art, like many other fields, has its own mechanisms for setting these limits, which are also shaped by culture and time.
Museums, galleries, academies, critics, curators, and the artists themselves, as well as other competent people, form a complex system that guides the viewer and, to some extent, decides what is and what is not a work of art.

There are certain characteristics that make it possible to identify and understand them.
Broadly speaking, interpreting a work of art involves analysing the elements it contains in order to understand what the artist wanted to convey by creating it.
This is true in an initial formal analysis, but of course there is much more to it.

Art endures and evolves through the centuries. Each work tells a unique story that can be perceived and interpreted in very different ways.
Although we can all appreciate and understand art, some people prefer to approach it from a more emotional and theoretical point of view.

 

¿Cómo interpretar una obra de arte?

There are 7 basic steps to analysing a work of art:

1. Historical context: what was the state of mind of the artist who produced the work we are looking at? This is the key to understanding what was going on at the time.
   Whether the artist chose to create a work on wood, stone or canvas, its meaning will be closely linked to the final result.
   Every work of art is a product of its time.
   Indeed, art is influenced by the events of its time.
   From post-war realism to the rebelliousness of contemporary art, each period reflects a personal and collective mentality through which we can appreciate the artist's intention and contribution to cultural dialogue.
2. The technique. The skills and know-how used by the artist. The style of his brushstrokes, lines, or surfaces can channel the psychology of the artist and the message he wants to convey. It is a tool that contributes to the understanding of the message. The technique used to render shapes, colours, and textures is likely to convey certain emotions.
3. Perspective. The point of view also reveals a lot about the person and who they are in their work.
4. The context and what it conveys. Does the work convey sadness, warmth, optimism, loneliness, anger, passion, or fear? Any feeling can be a clue.
   When you examine a work of art, don't be satisfied with first impressions. Instead, focus on the details: the colours used, the textures and shapes. Perception can reveal hidden symbolism.
5. Light. The key to everything in art. Volume and expression, colour and impact all depend on it.
6. Hues: the psychology of colour. Hues are the most direct way of perceiving emotions. Did you know that colours have the power to influence your emotions and state of mind? They are used in everything we do in our daily lives, and they are not placed at random, because they have a precise function, which is to try to provoke you in one way or another: to attract you, to 'attack' you, to make you nervous, and much more.
   Colour symbolism is certainly a complex area and can be interpreted in different ways depending on the context.
   If you're interested in finding out more about the psychology of colour, read our article.
7. The aesthetic experience: how does it make you feel? Even if it's not satisfying, it's no less valuable. Perhaps that's what the artist is trying to achieve.
   In modern and avant-garde art, many works provoke unpleasant feelings and reactions. This is usually social or political criticism, whether positive or negative.

Thanks to these steps, we have a more or less good understanding of what a work of art is, even if this is not always the case. There are no right or wrong answers when it comes to interpretation.

 

Let's summarise what we've been discussing:
When we look at a work of art, 3 elements combine to produce an effect, whether desired or not:

• Outside the context of the work: the whole context that has influenced the artistic creation.
• Within the context of the work: the work itself, or its evolution.
• The personal reaction provoked by the work of art: the process of interpretation by the recipient.

For more information and resources, art in the digital age is at your fingertips. Check out websites, documentaries, art communities, social networks, blogs and, of course, museums. Many museums offer visual tours of their galleries. So you can discover the great masters of art without leaving home.

We hope this short guide will help you decipher all that works of art have to say. Don't forget that the true meaning of art is not just what you see, but what it makes you feel and think.

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