The distinction of what's art is another question. Sculpture, poetry, culinary dishes, art of touch?
If all that is required is an emotional experience then a canvas painted 'a colour' will do or a note played on repeat with no breaks. Thay could cause an intense emotion, such as, strong anxiety.
Not disregarding your point but adding nuance to my initial comment devoid of nuance.
Absolutely! Nuance is definitely needed. But I feel that the distinction of what is art is embedded within the question, and clearly defined terms help to provide a worthy answer.
Maybe we should start with "what is art" before asking about its meaning, or whether it is just a pretty picture, or indeed a block of colour ..
I don't know .. I'm just a pleb with an appreciation for anything from Vincent van Gogh to Jackson Pollock 🤙🏼
What is art is a harder question tbf.
Its also contextual (for me) as someone copying Jackson Pollock is not the same as Pollock or Basquiat for instance, since he created a new way to do art - taking from others pollock being one
Just as a side question .. are we asking if art should have meaning for the observers/appreciators, or that art should have meaning for the artists/creators?
We'll say creators
In that case, I believe that the question of whether or not art should have meaning is moot. I feel that once the piece is created, it has fulfilled its purpose as an expression of meaningfulness for the creators .. like a form of "living in the moment". Again though, it's very subjective, and I am just a pleb with my own appreciation for the human condition that is "the journey".
A friend of mine likes to create a piece, he looks at it for a few weeks, then he has to give it away .. for him, the piece represents a part of himself that he doesn't want to recognise, or has moved beyond, and so the meaning he gave to it is now lost to him.
