The Concept of Lies and Truth in Abstract Art

“Art is a lie that brings us closer to the truth”, - Pablo Picasso.

This quote by Pablo Picasso states that although what is depicted in a work of art may be fictional, the message that the art conveys is often truthful. Unlike art, language is often literal. Excluding some proverbs, language gives us clear messages in comparison to art. The messages expressed in words are often not dependent on one’s interpretation, or at least, not to the same extent as with art. Clear messages can be more easily portrayed through words, than through art. The significance portrayed through words is more finite and constricted than what is portrayed through pictures, paintings, and other forms of visual art, specifically, abstract art.

Abstract expressionism is the development of mostly visual art intended to incite a ‘subjective emotional expression’. The characteristics of abstract art include: having no specific subject, and the tendency to want to portray a message by inciting emotion within the viewer.

The ‘lie’ contained within art refers to the human interpretation of the multifaceted and complex messages in it. Artworks often have no absolute truth contained in their messages because what they want to portray is ambiguous. The truth that ‘art brings us closer to’ is best analyzed through psychology around knowledge of natural sciences, and the effects that arts around what effect art has on a viewer. Emotion is the way of knowing that one uses to come up with an understanding. Hence, what an individual believes to be true is dependent on their philosophy.

Picasso was an abstractionist; his art was multidimensional and difficult to interpret. He argued that art is often interpreted through emotion and that it is “often felt, rather than seen or analyzed”. Thus, Picasso believed that art was not best used to describe an objective matter, but to incite a subjective emotional response within the viewer.

To some extent, the complexity and abstractness that makes artwork difficult to interpret is the principle of art itself; it’s what gives the art its value. The purpose of art is not to communicate a specific topic, but to help an audience comprehend a general concept through their emotional responses. The truth in art refers to one’s reaction to an artwork. In the lens of a psychologist, the emotion prompted by art is ‘is not a handicraft, it is the transmission of feeling the artist has experienced’. Furthermore, as stated by Picasso, art should be interpreted through emotion. Emotion is a way of knowing, therefore, knowledge can be generated through emotion. Thus, the viewer generates an understanding of the artwork as they experience it.

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Some argue that artists only create art to enjoy the pleasure of expressing themselves, and not to communicate a general idea. Regardless of the circumstances behind the creation of the artwork, one can still add their own interpretation and find a message that is ‘true’ to them. Even one who is uncultured towards art can analyze the work and find their own truth because art is an expression of our thoughts, emotions, intuitions, and desires and it’s about sharing the way we experience the world, which for many is an extension of personality. The artist may have not intended to create a work of art with the message that the viewer deduced. The message may be supplemented to the artwork by the beholder after the art has been created. The original message that the artist wanted to portray may be completely overlooked. This is part of the beauty of art. It has endless possible messages. Depending on one’s personal views and biases, one will imagine a message that holds true to them.

Jerry Uelsmann is a photographer whose art is abstract, like Picassos. His work contains many examples of art pieces that communicate a general idea by evoking an emotional response within the viewer. For example, Jerry Uelsmann created a picture of a house with tree roots coming out of the bottom. This image is meant to portray that your house is where you are ‘rooted’. No house has real tree roots coming out of the bottom. Therefore, If the work were to be taken literally, and at face value, it would be a ‘lie’. However, by looking beyond the face value of the work, one can see that it portrays an idea with potential for analysis, in which one will come up with their own conclusion as to what truths the artwork holds.

The possible messages contained in a work of art have become less constricted because art has become more abstract over time. The Abstract Expressionist movement began in New-York city after World War II. Since then, abstractionism has become more prevalent in modern artworks, pushing out realism and photographic works. Hence, art has become more of ‘a lie’ than before. However, abstract art is still capable of portraying a message, because messages can be carried through emotion.

Abstract art is particularly effective in displaying propaganda and expressing social taboos. In the minds of some individual an image of a black silhouette with his arm behind a white silhouette elucidates the fight against racism. The two silhouettes are ignoring their difference in color, and coming together. An example of where abstract imagery can be used to represent a political party’s political ideologies can be seen in some of Stalin’s old posters. Stalin was made to look tall, fearsome, and authoritative to embellish and inflate his position as ‘the man of steel’ in the public eye. These posters encouraged people to think of Stalin as a physically dominant, and powerful leader, when Stalin was below average height and had a disabled left arm. The reality was different than what was portrayed in the propaganda photos. The propaganda photos were meant to elucidate the lie that Stalin wanted his people to believe. He made himself look intimidating in his posters because he wanted the citizens to associate him with strength, and trust him so that he could establish total control over the government. Since Stalin’s image in the posters was different from how he was in life, the art was a lie.

However, it is the job of the viewer to reflect on the artwork, and not blindly follow the message that the artist wanted to portray. Blindly following the perceived message in a work of art can lead to one being negatively influenced. In the case of Stalin’s propaganda posters, blindly following the message that the artist behind the posters wanted to portray led to many Russian citizens choosing to support Stalin, therefore allowing him to become the absolute authority within the USSR. The art that was created by the propaganda artist convinced the citizens of a lie.

The principal of art is to be able to reflect and deduce a message from it. The beauty of art rests in being able to come up with a message that holds true to you. Art can be beautiful regardless of if the message that one comes up with is the message that the artist wanted to portray, like in Stalin’s propaganda posters. Picasso’s statement that art is a lie that brings us closer to the truth is true to a large extent. One’s view on a work of art is subjective. The value of art lies within an audience’s ability to interpret, and analyze artwork. Art encourages us to expand our views and look at the world through a different lens because a single artwork can have many possible explanations in the eyes of different individuals. The analysis of a work of art will vary from individual to individual, because one uses their own personal knowledge and consciousness to deduce a view that holds true to them.

Abstract art aims to incite a subjective emotional expression. What conclusion the viewer comes up with in regards to a specific artwork depends on his/her personal philosophy, and is a result of experiences that they have had throughout their lives. To effectively analyze a work of art, one must understand their own human disposition, because our analysis of art is limited to our understanding of the world. Our understanding of the world is based off our human nature and ways of knowing. The message that an artist may wish to portray may be inaccurate, and may work towards expressing the artists personal, and potentially untruthful beliefs, or even pushing forward the political agenda of a group. The possible messages that can be expressed in an abstract artwork are less constricted that in other forms of art. However, abstract artworks are still capable of conveying ideas by inciting emotion within the viewer. Per the IB, emotion is a way of knowing. The knowledge used to analysis visual art, and more specifically, abstract art, is generated from emotion. The knowledge generated from emotion is used to analyze the artwork, and modify the ‘truth’ in the art so that it makes sense to us. When we modify the truth through analysis of art, our perspective and outlook on the world are broadened.