What's in a name?

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Today, in my meditation, I had an insight. I was thinking about this painting that I painted (and sold) en plein air in Capitola a couple of weeks ago. Oh my! It's already been a couple of weeks! It feels much more recent. I recently read an article here about time and how/why it appears to go faster sometimes. More on that another time.... (no pun intended).

I was thinking about the title of this painting, and I realized the title has to tell a story that one can imagine and be in. The title should do more than describe what is obvious in the painting itself, what the viewer can already see. For example, I could have named this, predictably, 'Light through the Trees,' or 'Shadows in a Forest,' or some such - which is what you already see in the painting. That is the first thing that might already occur to you as to what the painting is about. But calling it "Meet Me at the Fence" now has a story. A story of two people about to meet, and here is their meeting point. The light through the trees is still there, and hasn't changed, but the painting is about much more than that. Sometimes, a title can trigger a feeling or emotion - it should do that - beyond what you see, and make you look again at what you might have missed the first time. Maybe you were remarking on the beauty of the light between the trees, then you read the title, and realize, oh! that's the fence where the meeting will happen! And the fact that the same light is also hitting the fence - coming through the trees to spotlight the fence, in a way - connects the whole composition together with the light.


Meet Me by the Fence



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