Mona Lisa - (Untitled)

ML - Welcome to Mona Lisa. A weekly newsletter for artists with timeless quotes, ideas and light bites for curious & wandering minds.

Light bites

🚿 Shower thought: Art is human. Error is human. Ergo… Art is Error?

🍌 That banana sold…for $6.2m at Sotheby’s, New York.

🚙 “There’s beauty in completion. And always faith in the unknown.” - Kendrick Lamar

🍎 The body reflects what you eat. The mind reflects what you consume.

Mona’s notes

Do you title your work? When do you title them? Whilst you are creating, right at the end, or when someone asks for a title? Does a title come naturally? I often wish this newsletter was a conversation as I am curious to hear about this part of the process (if it exists at all!)

What’s in a name? For centuries, titles have anchored works of art, songs, objects, and jewellery to their moment in time. But what happens when we choose not to name something? 🤔 In art, the “Untitled” label invites its own chaos and freedom to interpretation. I use to wonder, “did they forget to title it?” It could be argued that without a title, the immediacy of the work stays pure, unmediated by words. It’s a refusal to pin down meaning, allowing viewers to project their own - or is it simply an oversight. 🙄

In music however, titles often carry weight and can change the entire meaning of the song - maybe even challenging the lyrics or the melody. They’re arguably the first lyric before the beat drops. Consider Kendrick Lamar’s untitled unmastered.—a collection of tracks stripped of names yet packed with intention. Each track feels raw and unpolished, capturing a sense of honesty and creative freedom, reflected by their untitled nature. 🎶 

And books? 📖 Sometimes titles write themselves. But think of Toni Morrison, who agonised over hers until they sang, or consider Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, whose title Americanah acts as a beacon that either engenders curiosity or an immediate and deep understanding, depending on how close you are to her subject matter.

I personally love a good title, but that is because I view a title to be like a sprite that accompanies the work itself 🧚 - sometimes illuminating, sometimes mischievous, sometimes totally irrelevant and bananas. For my own work, I consider it a ‘naming’, making it less anonymous to me and signalling my decision to stop working on it - just let it be. Yet untitled works whisper, I am what I am. No more, no less. To title or not to title is a moment that I will encounter with every work that I make, and one that I remain fluid on. I enjoy the tension, and even more, I enjoy the power it extends to the artist to potentially change everything. 🌍

With love

Mona x

“Art is not what makes you see, but what makes others see.” — Edgar Degas

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