Putting Symbolism into Your Work

Hello Moonbeams,

Welcome to another Waxing Moon Session, a monthly post I like to  do that discusses ways in which we can learn and grow in our creativity with topics ranging from organization, inspiration, mental health and more.  

This month, you voted that I write about putting symbolism into artwork which I am really pleased about!  Symbolism is a huge passion and drive for me in creation but I do want to mention that if you do not personally create pieces with symbolism, that is absolutely okay too.  There is no right way to make art you enjoy. And another thing, art does not need to be "heavy" or "deep" to be symbolic.  Cheerful pieces can be just as rich and complex.  Pep-talk over, now let us talk symbolism. 

Intuition vs. Planning

My own journey with symbolism began perhaps 7 or 8 years ago.  Before that I used it only to an extent, preferring to allow my pieces to be very intuitive and energy based.  These days, I still make work along those lines but usually with smaller pieces.  The way I work now tends to be more of a mix of planned ideas, and intuitive energy.  

An example of an intuitive vs. more planned-out symbolic piece can be seen above.  Both are valid, but I think you can probably tell which has had a lot more time put in (and if I am honest, a lot more energy and complex joy.)

Often, my pieces begin with an idea, or a story I want to tell, and from there, I delve into thumbnail sketches, then a more refined sketch based on my favourite thumbnail, and then a colour and value concept for the piece.  I often leave things a little (or a lot) messy in my initial plans and allow some things to come to me as I render.  Usually, the final piece looks different from the plan because I allow myself to stray as I please.

I think the reason I began working with symbolism was because, as I got older, I began to desire something more candid within my work.  I loved working intuitively but I think I wanted to face certain truths about myself head-on and creation was a way to do that.  Working with symbolism allowed me to really dig into my ideas and emotions while still allowing intuition to guide me.

Finding Symbolic Ideas

When it comes to coming up with ideas for symbolism in your own work, an exercise I have students in my Class101 course do is to create a list of words that resonate with them, and then delve into the meanings that the words seem to contain.  A couple of words from my own list are American West: Having grown up in the country I have both a love and disdain for some of the lifestyles and aesthetic that are deeply rooted in childhood nostalgia.  Motels  represent places of rest but not of belonging, while neon signs are often about outside opinions put upon us by societal tradition.  Sometimes neon signs are just a way for me to declare a very strong message though, as in the case of my The Voices of Neon series.  So not all my symbolism is set in stone as just one thing.

Combining Symbolism

In the detail shots from the pieces above, Wasps represent rage, and mushrooms can be mental health decay, so my piece "War Dance" is about balancing rage and anger.  Pines feel like ancient family, and the structures in my work often represent the energy we put into the places we dwell.  The little cabin above is supported by family but somewhat unsure and removed as she sits in an empty "doorway" in the woods.  Once you have an idea of words that mean something to you, you can enjoy combining them into various narratives.  Looking at a list of resonating words can be an excellent prompt source for new creations as well!

Finding Symbolism to Fit a Piece

Sometimes I begin my ideas knowing specific pieces of symbolism I want to use, and other times I have to think about them.  When I created 'I'm Still Here' above, I knew I needed to make something specifically for my muse.  I had used myself up and burnt myself out for months and I was hating the projects I was involved with at the time so this was a sort of gift both for my muse and myself.  The idea of a sort of sacrificial bull, willingly draining his blood into a creator did not come to me through the mental word-list I mentioned, but rather through intuition I felt during the composing stage of the piece when I was hunting ideas.   

I would bet you have a lot of beautiful intuitive ideas floating about your innermost mind as well. Let them flow, explore them. One of the things I have found to be true over the years is the more that I let my wild ideas out, no matter how silly they feel, and whether I think anyone will get them or not, the more the ideas come to me willingly, like a trained muscle.

This does not mean ideas just flow to me perfect from the start. Perfection does not exist and while some ideas do seem to come galloping toward me like a crazed stallion, others take awhile to coax, and nurture.   The piece above was created from a combination of two ideas, then scrapped, then redrawn, partially painted, then scrapped again and started over.  I knew what I felt, but I did not know how I wanted it to look.  This one was like pulling teeth just as many of the best ideas are. 

If you are unsure where to start with adding specific meanings or symbols into your work, you can always ask other people to interpret what they see, and see if their ideas resonate with you!   The piece above is regularly interpreted by viewers.  Sometimes I love what they say, other times what they say goes completely against my own message for the piece but it is all fascinating to see how viewers reflect themselves in my work.  

In time, ideas will start flowing and you will find your own messages.  You do not need to have lived a wild life to get wild ideas.   My childhood in the country is a huge part of my inspiration now, although I barely ever left the house.  My friends were mostly online and I was quite lonely. My life was very "dull" But it gave me a way to measure the little sources of magic all around me that still inspire me today.  

Be well~
~Aria ☾