Mission of Misinterpretation: Contextualizing Interpretations to an Audience! 3 of 5

Lets take a peak at one of Francesco’s many paintings, shall we? Here is a piece titled Tree from The Book of the Sea. The book that this image comes from (a different book) is titled, Clemente by Francesco Clemente himself. It states that the piece is a watercolor on paper, the dimensions are 44 ¼ x 46 inches, and that it was created in 1993.


When I look at this piece I gather a calm feeling from the cool greens and blues that were used, in combination with a small mix of yellow in the upper half part. The watermarks from the paint seem to add to that calm feeling, similar to how water tends to naturally hold such a serene essence.

Looking at the content, we see a body in the center of this piece, existing among different sets of hands coming from every edge of the painting. All painted in a contour, the hands seem to be reaching, almost yearning, to touch the body that is in the middle. Most of the hands are touching and/or holding the body. Does this piece not scream sensual from the expressions found in the gestures of these bodies? Is the body in the center possibly a corpse? Are these reaching hands mourning over a family member, friend, or lover? Are the cool colors meant create a dark mood to represent a funeral burial?

What is this piece about? What was Francesco trying to say here? How should a person go about their interpretation? How can they avoid misinterpretations?

Before I begin to answer these questions, lets observe the actual interpretation we’re looking for. There can be literally one to millions of different kinds of interpretations created for any piece of art. For all artworks, the things that influence the interpreter also have the potential to influence their interpretation. For example, because the artist influences me I am curious to know what Francesco had in mind for this piece. Was it something he painted for someone else? Was this piece commissioned? These questions affect how I view and value this particular piece. These facts affect my interpretation.

For someone who has never heard of him before, and has encountered this piece for the first time, they might feel it is about something entirely different. If information about the artist were an important part of understanding the art, a viewer in this naïve situation would probably have a more difficult time interpreting it for its intended meaning. Depending upon what the audience seeks to find in this piece, the original intention set forth might be irrelevant, making the interpretation void of the artist’s intent.

The truth is no interpretations are 100 percent false. It depends upon the context in which we make our judgments. When creating an interpretation, the question you should ask yourself is, “for whom (what audience) am I making this interpretation for?” Is it for me? Do I want to know what the artist had in mind? Am I trying to explain this piece for my grandmother? Is this for a class? Should the artist’s intention affect my interpretation? Is there any specific information that I should consider when creating my interpretation?

In order to avoid misinterpretations, it is important to consider whom we are interpreting the work for as well as what information is important to properly make our judgment. In my case, if I am the only person looking at the piece, and I have no other formal audience, I would have the freedom to have any emotional response that I deem is appropriate. If I was having an intellectual conversation about Francesco Clemente, and this particular painting, facts that go further than my personal feelings should be taken into consideration.


You may wonder, “Isn’t this common sense?” For some people, that may be so, yet others still allow their personal feelings and biases influence their judgments. This can only make things more difficult when trying to create an objective interpretation, based on facts, which do not relate to the critics themselves.

So to answer my original questions about how to properly interpret this painting, I will have to determine who my intended audience is and how objective am I trying to be.

For now, it is only I. Whatever Francesco had in mind will not matter. The book provides no further information on this piece; either way it does not matter. Any emotion I feel for this painting, in this context, is accurate. I see this piece just as I have found it before; a painting about sensuality. The body in the piece is experiencing an existence of touch, expressing a, “this is what it feels like to be loved with touch,” kind of message.

Providing readers with information about the context in which the interpretation was made will also protect them from misinterpreting it.