“Stand and Deliver,” by Tracey Maras, pastel.
By Tracey Maras
What’s in a name, or in this case, what’s in a title?
A common question I hear is: “How do you come up with titles for your paintings?” This question can have varied answers.
Some artists choose not to title their artwork. There is even the quandary of using “Untitled” as a title, or is it not a title? Some titles are descriptive, such as “Red Tree” or “Three Trees.” Or if it is a series of paintings, “Tree IV.” For some, a single word suffices, while others create a prose of narration.
I fall somewhere in the middle of all this.
Sometimes a title will come to mind when first considering a piece, perhaps during the initial sketches. More often it is as the painting progresses. On occasion, it may even be weeks after a piece is completed.
But where does the idea for a title originate?
For many of my paintings, it begins with thoughts about how it makes me feel. Does it remind me of a moment or experience? Is the feeling an actual physical sensation? Does the painting remind me of an analogy? For example, a small painting I did of three trees became “Three Sisters” and subsequently sold to a father of three daughters.
With music always playing in the background in my studio, the lyrics of a song may prompt a title. Or, words from a favorite book come to mind.
A common routine for me is to sit down in the rattan rocker I received from my grandmother, relaxing with a cup of tea. I regard the painting. A word comes to mind, and I begin thumbing through a thesaurus, or I look up synonyms on my phone. One word can lead in many directions, like the branches of a tree, until it comes to that perfect leaf.
Sometimes I don’t even know where the title comes from. It just miraculously presents itself.
Titles can change. What once seemed perfect may diminish as the painting waits for its final framing. The change is usually for the better. On rare occasions, I have asked myself if I should change a title. For a recent painting, I selected a title I felt perfectly conveyed the story of protecting those dear to you. After launching the painting, a friend informed me that the original use of the phrase was used by highway bandits hundreds of years ago. That was definitely not the story I envisioned. I contemplated whether I needed to change the title.
In the end, I decided against a change. As artists, we interpret the world around us. And I chose to reinterpret an archaic phrase. Because, frankly, it was a darn good title: “Stand & Deliver.”
Tracey Maras is a Signature Member at Heartland Art Club. Her blog articles appear bi-monthly.