Symbolism & Iconography in Art

Explore your emotions with the symbolic meanings in contemporary artwork. Learn how to identify the signs of your core self to inspire emotional growth.

Learn More

Get a personal consultation


ARCHIVES

Dark Art, Self-development Quinn Dark Art, Self-development Quinn

It’s All in Your Head: Some analysis & a review

I was visiting one of my daughters the other day, and she mentioned she’d been gifted a book, and she’d had to put it down because she was at the point of flinging it off the balcony.  

“It could just be me, though, mum. You might like it, and I’m maybe just being a dick. I don’t think he knows what he’s on about, and I ain’t getting some of the art.”

As she handed it over, I could see that I quite liked the art style. It was close enough to imagery that I knew I’d enjoy looking at, but I was concerned about the writing. Daughter hadn’t even got a quarter of the way through the book before her irritation had risen high enough to reject the entire thing.

Read More
Relationships, Dark Art Quinn Relationships, Dark Art Quinn

She Always Finds Me

A well-dressed man stands on a piece of broken eggshell. In front of him, a newly-hatched giant white egg dominates the scene; tentacles rise upwards from inside the egg. The viewer is left with no doubt they belong to something monstrous and more powerful than the man.

Read More
Short Thoughts, Dark Art Quinn Short Thoughts, Dark Art Quinn

Bad Signs

Nothing in this picture suggests anything of solid predictive value; it's a snapshot of where things are at in a moment. At face value, it all looks pretty hopeless. The telephone box is clearly a significant symbol of communication. Although in this case, we have solid indicators that the words,

Read More
Short Thoughts, Dark Art Quinn Short Thoughts, Dark Art Quinn

Endings

Now and again, I come across an image slightly different from what usually draws my attention. It will usually represent a once familiar tune that no longer plays, but the memory of the dance it inspired will rattle through my body. Sometimes it creates discomfort, and at other times, joy.

Read More
Dark Art, Relationships Quinn Dark Art, Relationships Quinn

Isolation

Kasia Derwinska’s art reminds me of the work of Leszek Bujnowski. Kasia has an awful lot of images to look through, but I didn’t even get off the first page before realising she was able to pull the viewer into a place of quiet. However, it’s not because of her choice of subject matter. She evokes

Read More
Dark Art, Relationships Quinn Dark Art, Relationships Quinn

Friend or Foe?

A couple of years ago, someone randomly sent me this picture with the comment they thought I’d like it, and I did. Despite the image provoking a sense of intimidation, I found it intriguing. I put it to one side for a post but somehow deleted it. I searched high and low

Read More
Dark Art Quinn Dark Art Quinn

Looking In

The three images I want to look at in this post were in the same portfolio as the Kraken image I shared the other day. I felt they offered a calm respite from the internal shite threatening to throw me off-balance. The view through each window provides only tiny pieces of information and

Read More
Dark Art Quinn Dark Art Quinn

Art as Therapy: An artist’s expression

The following images are all the work of Susanne, a woman living on Sweden’s west coast. I came across her work on DeviantArt; she runs an Art-Psychology group there and openly admits to using art as a form of therapy, along with any writing she does to go alongside it. I

Read More
Dark Art Quinn Dark Art Quinn

Bird Call

Someone sent this to me a couple of days ago, and it was the second time in as many days that she privately tagged me with a picture attached. Both contained a bird. My mythically inclined self was unable to keep quiet on the arrival of the second. I not-so-quietly suggested

Read More