Understanding Art with Iconography | Art Terms | LittleArtTalks

- Hey guys, it's Karin.
Welcome to Little Art Talks.

Today, let's talk about iconography.

In artwork, the
iconography is the imagery,

it's the visual images and symbols in it.

It can also refer to the study

or interpretation of these images,

focusing on the meaning given

by a particular range or
system chosen by the artist.

This means it refers to source
texts outside of the artwork.

Their meaning is derived
from what is depicted

dependent on things outside of the artwork

as opposed to things inside the artwork

like form, style, color.

Obviously, those things
are still really important

to the meaning of the painting,

but when you're reading
with an iconographic lens,

you're focusing on the relationship

between these images or icons
and the source text outside.

The term comes from the Greek
word "icon" meaning image

An icon originally referred

to a picture of Christ on a panel

used as an object of devotation

in the Orthodox Greek church

from at least the seventh century on.

So the term is used for any object

or image that has some
sort of special meaning

attached to it.

The definition might be
a little bit confusing,

so let me give you an example.

In Christian religious painting,

they have their own set of iconography.

For example, the Lamb,
which represents Christ,

or the dove, which
represents the Holy Spirit.

Classical myth has its
own set of iconography.

For example, a woman
accompanied by a dove,

which suggests the goddess
Aphrodite or Venus.

So the meaning of particular
images is dependent on context.

Iconography can also be very personal.

18th century poet and
painter William Blake

invented a complex, personal iconography

to illustrate his vision of man and God.

The iconography of Pablo Picasso
is mostly autobiographical.

And Joseph Beuys developed
an iconography of substances,

such as felt, fat, and honey,

to express his ideas
about life and society.

Because meaning is derived

from previously established relationships,

iconographic analysis is best suited

for things similar to ancient,
medieval and Renaissance art,

art and objects informed
by classical mythology

and Christian doctrine.

An example of what doesn't work well

with iconographic analysis is modern art

because these artists are often the ones

to challenge this presumption

of an illustrational relationship
between image and text.

So they did a bunch of
things like abstraction,

chance, found, or ready-made objects

that kind of screw with the system.

I hope this video helps you
better understand iconography.

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Thanks so much for watching,

and I'll see you guys next time.