Why do people purchase paintings? Because they add a focal point to your room. They communicate something about your personality. Paintings communicate a lot. Looking at them for a long time leads to having a connection with them. The little white tag on the side with the title of the painting is also a vital piece to make a connection with the potential buyer. It is a small window to peek through the artist's mind. The title shows the breadth and depth of the unique message being communicated in the painting.
Here are a few things which good artists follow like bible while thinking of a title for their oil paintings:
What is the worst thing to happen when you are reading a book or watching a TV show? To know the ending before finishing the book or a TV show. You have spent days or probably month’s just o know the end which all went in vain. Same can be said for the title. If the title contains each and every detail about the painting, it will be boring for the buyer. The title should be abstract even if your painting is not anything related to abstract art so that the potential buyer can make assumptions on his own. For example, if there is a painting of a man shouting, you will never write the title as "THE ANGRY MAN". Instead, you will title it as "THE SAD BEING" or give him any other title which makes the buyer think about the past or the future rather than what they just see.
Why is music so addictive? Because of the words which are put together so intelligently that we can all relate to it. This wordplay can be practiced for designing the titles too. Being poetic means being creative and innovative to add depth to the title. The more a title is poetic, the more balanced your painting will look. Be witty, pithy and clever while writing the title to make it the ultimate contemporary art.
Don't use literal words for example blue colored sky in the title is a sin. Instead, write the cool hues of pristine, blue lightens the mood pristinely; add something which captures the mood metaphorically. Now if someone is feeling tired, the title will be imbuing enough for them to enlighten while they are looking at the picture. While you curate the title, just don't go for the literal description, try to use as many alternative words as possible.
Painting is one of the oldest forms of arts but it is something to look at. If someone wants to read, he or she will read a book. They will not read the title of the painting. Keep the title of the painting short. One-liner will be fine for the painting after all you want your viewer to draw inferences rather than just telling them a story with a conclusion.
The best thing about any art piece whether it is poetry or book or song or painting, you like it because it is relatable. The characters, the words, the message has a few traits which you find in yourself which lead to triggering the likeness of that piece. The same rule applies to the likeness of the painting. The message of the painting should be including and the title of the painting should be super including. The more inferences a painting sets off, the better it is. It means that it is delivering something to everyone who is looking at it.
If the title is creating an argument with the viewer, it is okay. Keep it in mind that a painting is not something everyone agrees with. It is supposed to communicate a relatable message on which some can argue if it is not completely relatable.
Hence, we conclude that the titles for the paintings are very important. Take an immense amount of time and go through the process of how you painted and curated the painting in the first place. Then come up with the title. The title of the painting is something worth to spend time on.
