Once it is out of his hand the artist has no control over the way a viewer will perceive the work. Different people will understand the same thing in a different way.
A work of art may be understood as a conductor from the artist's mind to the viewer's. But it may never reach the viewer, or it may never leave the artist's mind.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Art serves as a bridge between the artist's thoughts and the audience's understanding; however, this connection may not always be successful.
This quote by Sol Lewitt highlights the complex relationship between an artist's intention and the viewer's perception. It suggests that while art is meant to convey ideas and emotions from the creator to the observer, the effectiveness of this communication is uncertain. An artwork may fail to communicate its intended message, or conversely, it may remain trapped in the artist's imagination, never materializing for the audience to appreciate. Thus, art is both a potential conduit and a possible barrier in the expressive process.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
A gallery opening where the artist discusses their intention behind the artwork.
More from Sol Lewitt
All quotes →The system is the work of art; the visual work of art is the proof of the System. The visual aspect can't be understood without understanding the system. It isn't what it looks like but what it is that is of basic importance.
Artists are mystics rather than rationalists. They leap to conclusions that logic cannot reach.
Buying books was a way anyone could acquire a work of art for very little.
Unless you're involved with thinking about what you're doing, you end up doing the same thing over and over, and that becomes tedious and, in the end, defeating.
Every generation renews itself in its own way; there's always a reaction against whatever is standard.
Similar quotes
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The primary requisite for writing well about food is a good appetite. Without this, it is impossible to accumulate, within the allotted span, enough experience of eating to have anything worth setting down.
A work of art is good if it has arisen out of necessity. That is the only way one can judge it.
We need to bring music to the people, even to those who normally do not listen to classical music.
By close-ups of the things around us, by focusing on hidden details of familiar objects, by exploring commonplace milieus under the ingenious guidance of the camera, the film, on the one hand, extends our comprehension of the necessities which rule our lives; on the other hand, it manages to assure us of an immense and unexpected field of action.
Every film is a political act; it's how you see the world.