It is the connection between the author, the text and you as you, at a particular point, with a particular set of circumstances informing a particular emotional response, that created that sense of deep meaning.It is the connection between the author, the text and you as you, at a particular point, with a particular set of circumstances informing a particular emotional response, that created that sense of deep meaning.

_{— On Connection, Kae Tempest}

To understand art, we need to look at more than the artifact, the book, the album, the written text, the poem. It's just as important to look at two other things to understand meaning.

One, what the artist put into it… their intentions, their life story, their attitude, their feelings, their mental state, their specific decisions in the process. Most of the time, outsiders can't really observe any of this. We might find out parts if you read their autobiography, watch a documentary or read interviews or, ahem, subreddits.

Two, what the audience experiences… this too is highly personal. What we experience when enjoying a work of art, hits different when we're just going through heartbreak. When we are drunk, or maybe sober. Or when our thoughts just wandered off to remembering to turn on the dishwasher. Context matters too, and can change over time.