I went to Linda Nochlin's lecture at the Getty "How Landscape Means, Courbet and His Territory". She discussed how Courbet's landscapes could be interpreted as self portraits, or covert political statements, or in some cases, and not all are in agreement about this, some feel that there was a stage where some of his work was meaningless. She states, "Once a painting is out in the world its meaning is up for grabs." I find that an interesting thought and of course any individual finds meaning as a work of art is perceived through their subjective filters. I also find it interesting how these perceptions shift over time.
I found the lecture to be very entertaining in several ways. At one point a cell phone went off while Linda Nochlin was speaking - it turned out to be hers. That was good for a laugh. It might have been even funnier had she answered it.
