by Aaron Hawkins

Created on: December 15, 2009

A good way to title artwork is to simply name it whatever it reminds you of. This can be a great way to connect with people who think the same way you do. I love taking the name of a piece and discovering it's meaning to the artist, so I can understand a little more about the artist's feelings while he/she was painting it.

For instance, Van Gogh's "Scream" puts me in mind of his unstable mental condition. It even reminds me a bit of my own feelings of frustration. That is what it means to me. Someone else might look at it and think it's someone who saw something horrific. But if he had named it "Yawn" I would think of something entirely different. The look of horror on it's face could be interpreted as a tired person who needs rest, thus altering the viewers emotions accordingly.

When I first saw the painting "A Veteran In A New Field" by Winslow Homer, I didn't get the chance to look at the title. I thought it was just a picture of a young man taking care of his field. A pleasant scene, and a beautifully painted one. But when I got the chance to look at the title, I understood. In the bottom-left corner of the painting there is a cast away uniform. It was painted in 1965, right after the Civil War. His scythe represents the soldiers grim harvest of death, as well as Lincolns assassination. The Battle Of Gettysburg took place in a field, giving it the revealing name "A Veteran In A New Field." The wheat he harvests (a Northern crop) can be interpreted as a sign of new life and the North winning the Civil War. Very inspiring. 

"Guernica" by Pablo Picasso is a classic example of a painting using a single word to show great meaning. It could have been named "Tragedy of War" or "Civilian Death" or something of that type, but he chose Guernica to remind people of the tragedy of the bombing of Guernica in 1937. He wanted to show the world the pain that war caused, as well as bringing attention to the Spanish Civil War in 1937. Many civilians died in the famous bombing of Guernica. Picasso masterfully shows body parts and horrified faces, including a grieving mother holding a dead baby and a dying horse. The name Guernica put the memory of that horrific scene in the minds of the people who knew what Guernica was, giving the painting much more meaning then it would have had with a less profound title. 

In the end, then, a painting title should inspire the viewer to greater understanding of the artist's painting and view of the world. So many emotions can be shown through a title. Anger, pain, grief, happiness, the whole gamut of emotions, all in a word or phrase. 

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