Difference between sign and symbol. Logo or trademark: what to choose, what's the difference. The main characteristics of the symbol

Concept of symbol and sign, detailed classification

Symbolology is a voluminous science that studies a huge number of signs that have arisen and arise throughout the history of mankind.

Every nation, every era, every person created his own system of symbols, which he trusted, and which was decisive for him.

Not all emerging signs become symbols, just as not all symbols are signs. And in order to successfully classify characters, you need to understand the difference between them.

Symbols- this is a schematic, abstract, multi-valued display of the image of an object, concept or phenomenon.

Sign- this is a schematic unambiguous display of an object, concept or phenomenon.

Thus, the main difference between a symbol and a sign is whether it is assigned a semantic meaning or whether it carries informational information.

As a result, the first item in the classification should be division by common characteristic:

1) symbol

2) sign

Both of them will have their own characteristics and their own classification. But at this stage, we leave the signs and go directly to the symbols, since we will develop a detailed classification specifically for them.

First of all, division should be done, if possible, use symbols for magical purposes. Therefore, we divide by:

1) magical- have magical powers or are used in various magical practices

2) not magical- do not possess magical powers and are not used for magical purposes.

At the next stage of classification, we consider symbols by degree of difficulty. They may be:

1) Simple- consisting of one character

2) Complex- consisting of a group of simple symbols, logically combined, and having their own meaning in such an association, different from the meaning of its constituent simple symbols.

Further classification should be carried out according to level of abstraction. Symbols can be:

1) Specific- a simplified depiction of certain real-world phenomena

• symbol-concept - these are symbols reflecting ideas, feelings or abstract qualities associated with the inner world of living beings.
• symbol-image - symbols that imitate the shape of the creature or object with which they are associated.

2) abstract- existing in unimprinted or mixed form.

• invisible symbols - abstract ideas and speculative pictures that do not exist in material form.
• ritual rites and actions - magical symbols based on sound or gesture series.

1) graphic- all symbols that can be drawn or drawn on a plane (drawings, pictograms, hieroglyphs, etc.)

2) subject- all symbols that are expressed in material material form (things, objects, phenomena expressed explicitly)

3) auditory- intangible things that cannot be expressed graphically (songs, music, titles, names, etc.)

4) gestural- intangible things expressed by movements (dances, gestures)

The next parameter by which you can classify - origin of characters. Origin all symbols are divided into:

1) natural symbols- symbols that are natural (for example: plants, animals, birds, minerals, planet symbols, etc.)

2) Artificial symbols- symbols that, one way or another, were created or invented by man (numbers, works of art, symbols taken from mythology, etc.)

3)Sign symbols- symbols that are signs at the same time (for example: alchemical symbols, symbols of the zodiac constellations)

5) Heraldic symbols- symbols found in heraldry.

6) Combined symbols- symbols that have the same meaning in different categories, scientific symbols can also be included here.

Further classification will be related to characteristic each character directly. It does not have a mandatory general character, but gives an idea of ​​the possibilities of using each symbol in the system of magic. This classification is not tiered and each symbol will be characterized by all categories.

According to the purpose of the impact they are:

• Filling - symbols that interact directly with energy
• Cleansing - symbols used in various cleansing amulets and charms that help cleanse from various kinds of negativity
• Destructive - symbols that contribute to the destruction of an object or phenomenon
• Restoring - symbols that allow you to restore the destroyed
• Protective - symbols used in protection from negative energy
• Percussion - symbols used for attack
• Exploding - symbols that trigger under certain conditions
• Copying - symbols that allow you to recreate a copy of an object in any form, including astral
• Amplifying - symbols that enhance the effect of magic items or other symbols and signs
• Distorting - symbols that distort the perception of an object or phenomenon that affect any of the sense organs or a group of sense organs at all levels of perception
• Accelerating - symbols that speed up the process
• Special - characters used for only one action
• Vaults
• burning
• Jumping

By degree of impact, characters are divided into:

• Superheavy - symbols that affect the environment on a global level
• Heavy - symbols affecting space at three levels of perception
• Medium - symbols that affect space at the physical level
• Lungs - symbols that do not affect space and are used in simple magical rituals
• Ultralight - symbols used to record a process that do not affect the surrounding space

By type of spatio-temporal influence characters can be:

• Ordinary - general action
• Spatial - actions stretched in space
• Temporary - actions extended in time

By level of impact they are:

• Positional (physical plan)
• Energy (biological plan)
• Astral
• mental

By area of ​​influence are divided into:

• Elemental - having no direction
• Wave - having direction
• General - local impact

BUT by type of impact on the:

• Energy
• Informational
• Energy information

According to the impact function symbols are divided into:

• Invisible
• Implicit
• Soft, hard
• Self-guided
• self-activated
• self-destructive
• Self-healing
• transforming
• Binders

Concept of symbol and sign, detailed classification

Character parsing example:

Pentacle.

Description : A five-pointed star enclosed in a circle. It is used in magic to draw the energy of the earth and concentrate power. The pentacle symbolizes birth and rebirth, although it is often associated with the symbol of evil spirits. But in magic, this symbol is used to protect and control elemental forces, elemental forces and feelings. The Pentacle represents these forces. In an inverted state, the pentacle is very dangerous, as it causes negative forces. But this is only one of its types used in magic, there are also others.

Pentacle according to the general classification: Artificial graphic concrete magic symbol-concept.

Pentacle refers to the sign character group.

1) by appointment, it belongs to the group of protective and reinforcing

2) according to the degree of impact - superheavy, - it is one of the most powerful magical symbols,

3) by type of impact - ordinary,

4) according to the level of impact - astral, energy

5) by area of ​​influence - general,

6) in appearance - energy

7) according to the function of influence - self-directing.

Andrey Baturin, October 24, 2018

WebEvolution Studio develops logos according to 3 tariff plans: "Express", "Standard", "Trademark". They have features and differences. You can read more about this at. But now let's talk about what is the difference between a logo and a trademark, why we have allocated such a tariff and how the registration of company symbols is beneficial to the owner.

Logo

- a memorable graphic symbol of the company, which is one of the main components of corporate identity. It can be an inscription of the name of the company, an image, an abstract symbol-emblem. This definition follows from practice, the legislation does not contain the exact meaning.

Trademark

- a designation that serves to individualize the goods of legal entities or individual entrepreneurs. A certificate is issued for it, the exclusive right is recognized for the owner. This concept and norm are enshrined in Art. 1477 GK.

The same article of the Civil Code in part 2 points to another term. We are talking about a service mark, a way to individualize a work or service.

So what is the difference between a logo and a trademark? In fact, it turns out that a trademark is used to highlight a product, and a service mark is used for services or works. A logo can be ordered by any company that produces or sells goods, provides services, provides services, performs work.

This is an understandable, but simplified formulation. The differences between the concepts are deeper, and they are contained mainly within the boundaries of the legal field.

What is the difference between a trademark and a logo

In Russian laws that regulate copyright, the term "logo" is absent. There is no such legal procedure as registration of the logo. But there is and is regulated in detail the registration of a trademark. Why did it happen?

Intellectual property is protected by the state. Not everyone receives it, but only those who, in the prescribed manner, applied for the design of the sign. He can be:

• verbal.
• Graphic.
• Verbal-graphic.

Accounting for the "recorded" symbolism is carried out by spheres. MKTU distributes activities by classes. When a company selling washing powder wants to register the name of its product, say, "Chistin", another organization dealing with household chemicals will no longer be able to register it. But if the company earns something else, for example, it provides cleaning services, then it will be able to use the same name.

Simply put, the logo is an unregistered trademark. It is rarely covered by legal protection. Accordingly, a trademark is, among other things, a registered logo.

Not all logo owners agree to this legal operation. Although after it the trademark is guaranteed not to be able to be used by anyone else. More precisely, it can, but at the risk of being severely punished for the fact of detecting illegal use. Fines for this reach up to 5 million rubles.

The difficulty is that the trademark registration procedure:

1. Not easy.
2. Long.
3. Not free, but quite expensive.

Therefore, many prefer to limit themselves to the logo. This is not to say that it is not protected by intellectual property law in any way. There are times when a company and its symbol are so famous that everyone understands whose logo it is. A striking example is Russian Railways. Well-known brand emblems may not be used by any other entities, even if they operate in a different field.

The logo must be unique! As well as other business attributes: names, slogans, site domain names. In order not to accidentally violate someone's rights, you need to check for the identity of the symbolism. Of course, it cannot be compared with the expertise of patent attorneys, but it will give its results. There are many online services for searching symbols.

How is a trademark registered?

Services help to find an exact copy of a symbol. Then it becomes clear that it cannot be used. But there is such a thing as similarity to the point of confusion. In other words, the logo does not repeat the "colleague" exactly, but uses a similar font, image, color scheme.

Rospatent, when registering trademarks, checks such similarity and will not issue a certificate for a mark that is similar to the registered one. Refusal can be received suddenly. You really may not know that someone has already developed and designed similar symbols. In case of refusal, the paid state fee is not refundable!

In order not to get into a similar situation, you can use the services of specialized organizations. Patent offices will check, perform a search, including for the presence of similar logos.

And now attention: important information! that we offer to clients includes pre-screening. This is done by a patent attorney who cooperates with us on an ongoing basis. Details are below.

The registration process is lengthy, taking from ten months to one and a half years. There is a plus - from the moment of filing an application until the issuance of a certificate, the owner receives a priority right to use the designation. A trademark certificate is issued for 10 years, then it needs to be renewed, which will also take a long time - about a year.

But as a result of registration, you get full rights to your branding and can:

• Defend violated interests in court and demand compensation!
• Sell ​​rights to use the mark to interested parties.
• Organize a franchise and profit from it.
• Develop and promote the brand without the risk that competitors may “take away” your logo.

Development of a logo according to the tariff "Trademark"

• Development begins with filling out a brief. When it is ready, the task is formed, and we sign the contract.
• The first step is to choose a logo concept together. Having decided on it, we work with the form, then we select the font and color. There are no restrictions on the number of edits!
• The next step is to search for similar trademarks.
• In five working days, we prepare at least three ideas for developing a logo and show it to you. Your comments will help move in the right direction.
• Step by step, we are working on the idea, getting feedback, finalizing the logo until you approve it. And then the search for the presence of similar signs is started again.

Development is carried out at a high professional level. All your ideas are embodied, and wishes are taken into account.

Please note that the preparation of documents and the fee to Rospatent are paid separately!

This tariff has an obvious plus: you get a trademark. At the same time, the probability of refusal of Rospatent in its registration is minimized. A patent attorney can help you in the future when communicating with the authority. Take the first step in this direction - call us!

Culture, beginning with organization, with order, with ritual, structures the world around a person in certain forms. These forms are sign-symbolic in nature. When it comes to symbols and signs, the question always arises: a sign - what? symbol of what? This question means that the meaning of these concepts can be revealed only by analyzing their relation to something third, to the original, which may not have (and most often has) nothing in common in terms of physical, chemical and other properties with the reflection carrier. But all are in some connection, being the result of human knowledge, clothing this result in certain forms. The concepts of "sign" and "symbol" are often used in the same semantic context, but this is far from always justified. Consider the specifics of their origin and functioning.

Sometimes you can come across the statement that signs are what distinguishes a person from the animal world. The definition of a sign as a watershed between the behavior of animals and humans is the result of a confusion of the concepts of sign and symbol. However, there is reason to believe that proto-languages ​​arose from sign systems formed in the animal world. The researchers argue that these systems can be quite differentiated. So, for example, dominant males in a flock of vervets can make six different danger signals. Some of these signals mean "simply" danger, some are separate "kinds" of danger ("man" or "snake", "danger from above", "leopard", "danger from below").

The line between culture and nature is generally not as obvious as those who absolutize the shortest of the definitions of culture: "culture is everything that is not nature." K. Levi-Strauss, who conducted field research in the tropical jungles of Central Brazil among the tribes, where the layer of culture is still very thin and one can trace the connection between man and nature, when the signifier was not yet completely separated from the signified, concluded that the taboo on incest turned out to be that boundary after which nature passed into culture. However, the German ethnologist Bischof proved that the same taboo exists in gray geese and that a similar behavioral pattern is most likely due to hormonal processes.

Based on this kind of research, we believe that human culture begins where and when the ability of consciousness to symbolize appears. Signs and symbols, wrote E. Cassirer, "belong to two different discursive universes: a signal [E. Cassirer uses this term as a synonym for a sign. – N. B. ] is part of the physical world of being, while the symbol is part of the human world of meaning. Signals are 'operators', symbols are 'designators'... A symbol is not only universal, but extremely variable... A sign or signal is related to the thing it refers to in a fixed, unique way."

So, sign - this is a material object (phenomenon, event), acting as an objective substitute for some other object, property or relationship and used to acquire, store, process and transmit messages (information, knowledge). This is a materialized carrier of the image of an object, limited by its functional purpose. The presence of the sign makes it possible to transmit information through technical communication channels and its various - mathematical, statistical, logical - processing.

A symbol is one of the most ambiguous concepts. They believe that the word simbolon a half of a shard was called, which was given to the guest and served as his identity card during subsequent visits to the house. Symbol in culture, it is a universal, multi-valued category, revealed through a comparison of the objective image and deep meaning. Turning into a symbol, the image becomes "transparent", the meaning, as it were, shines through it.

The aesthetic information that a symbol carries has a huge number of degrees of freedom, far exceeding the possibilities of human perception. “I call a symbol any structure of meaning,” P. Ricoeur wrote, “where the direct, primary, literal meaning means at the same time another, indirect, secondary, allegorical meaning, which can only be understood through the first one. This circle of expressions with a double meaning is actually hermeneutic field.

In table. 6.1 an attempt is made to systematize information about the sign and symbol. It also includes information about such an important category of language as metaphor.

Table c. one

Comparative characteristics of the categories "sign", "symbol", "metaphor"

Criteria			Metaphor
Origin	From the animal world	Arises with the development of the psyche, when the division into reason and feeling is realized, the real world and its reflection in artificial forms are distinguished	Arises spontaneously in the process of artistic development of the world as a result of an intuitive feeling of the similarity of matter and spirit (water flows, time flows), areas perceived by different senses (solid metal and solid sound)
Place of stay	It exists in the animal world, in various spheres of society: science, religion, art, communications, etc.	Culture as a whole is at the stage when its unity is formed, through the forms of art, science, religion. It exists in personal life, in society, state, ethnic, etc. commonality	Artistic, everyday and scientific speech (except for business discourse, where accuracy and unambiguity are required). Does not belong to any personal or social sphere
Purpose of application	Informing, communication	Representation of objects, events or ideas	Coventionalization of meaning
	Both non-groinness and targeting, the desire for classification, a direct connection between the sign and the signified	Denotes not itself, but something else, opens access to consciousness, expresses general ideas, extralinguistic, imperative. It has a generalized form. Easily overcomes "earthly gravity", seeking to designate the eternal and elusive, leads beyond reality. Decomposes the image into symbolic elements, turning it into "text"	Verbal structure, seme! accuracy, does not seek classification. Image-individualization. Places a bet on value. It is used within meanings that are directly or indirectly related to reality, and thus deepens the understanding of reality. Preserves the integrity of the image
	Archetypal meanings: based on the unchanging properties of nature and man
		gravitate towards a graphic image, stabilize the form

Everyday life of a person is filled with symbols and signs that regulate his behavior, allowing or forbidding something, personifying and filling it with meaning. In symbols and signs, both the external "I" of a person (self) and the inner "I" (I), the unconscious, given to him by nature, are manifested. K. Levi-Strauss claimed that he had found a way from symbols and signs to the unconscious structure of the mind, and consequently, to the structure of the Universe.

The unity of man and the universe is one of the most ancient and mysterious themes in culture. In legends, people are stars, the spirality of celestial nebulae is repeated many times in the ornaments of all terrestrial cultures, red blood owes its color to iron, and all the iron that is on earth, according to astronomers, arose in stellar matter. Or let's take the spiral structure of many areas of the human body: the auricle, the iris of the eye... It was this sense of unity that allowed the mathematician and poet V. Khlebnikov to create his own model of a metalanguage consisting of seven layers.

Approaching the riddle, however, only increases its mystery. But this feeling of mystery is “the most beautiful and deepest experience that falls to the lot of a person,” as A. Einstein claims, “underlies religion and all the deepest trends in art and science. Anyone who has not experienced this feeling, it seems to me if not a dead man, then at least a blind one"

1. 1. The role of art in understanding information.
2. 2.  Culture is considered as a sign-symbolic system.  One of the first who paid serious attention to the iconic nature of culture was Ernst Cassirer (1874-1945) - a German philosopher and culturologist.  "All human activity is symbolic."
3. 3. One of the founders in our domestic science is Yuri Mikhailovich Lotman (1922 - 1993).  He saw a sign system in culture and defined it as a "semiosphere" (by analogy with the concept of "biosphere" introduced by V. I. Vernadsky), thereby emphasizing its global character.  "The area of ​​culture is always the area of ​​symbolism."  He saw the main social role of culture in the fact that it is the "non-genetic memory of the collective", stores and transmits the accumulated experience. 
4. 4.  A sign is a material object (phenomenon, action) that acts in the processes of cognition and communication as a representative (substitute) of another object and is used to receive, store and transmit information about it.  The sign is a unity of material form and ideal content, meaning, meaning.
5. 5. that the sign has a substantive and semantic meaning, that is, it refers to the subject and embodies information about it.  Information about the subject, or the semantic meaning of the sign is determined by the system in which it is included.  Culture can act as such a system.  Gestures, facial expressions, color do not have semantic meaning in themselves, they acquire it only in the context of a particular culture.  Therefore, understanding the culture of other peoples involves understanding the meaning, the meaning of its iconic elements. 
6. 6. N.S. Krylov, Russian winter, 1827 Qi Baishi, “Autumn cicada on lapina flowers”
7. 7. - designations denote objects, actions, properties and other characteristics of the world around a person. They have no resemblance to the designated objects, but only carry information about them.  Signs - models reproduce the characteristic features of the objects they replace, have similarities with them. Thanks to this, the information obtained on the model can be transferred to the original.  Signs - symbols - these are material phenomena, which in a visual - figurative form represent abstract ideas and concepts. 
8. 8.  Symbols are created mainly purposefully, and not spontaneously. They are conventions accepted by people with a certain degree of conventionality.  A valuable component occupies a large place in the symbol.  The attitude of a person to certain phenomena of nature, society, culture is associated with the symbol. For example, Picasso's dove is a symbol of peace for all nations.
9. 9. First appeared in 1949 as the emblem of the I World Congress of Peace Supporters, which was held simultaneously in Paris and Prague. Dove of Peace The author of the emblem is Pablo Picasso, who created both the emblem of the Congress and several wonderful variations on the same theme. By the way, Picasso also named his daughter Paloma - a dove.
10. 10. Pigeons. Romanesque painting on the coffered ceiling in Zillis, 1160 Evangelist John. Mosaic in the Church of San Clemente, Rome
11. 11.    doves were considered symbols of peace and peacefulness, more precisely, doves (usually with an olive branch in their beak) of Venus, the goddess of love, who made their nest in the helmet of Mars, the god of war. In the biblical legend of the Flood (Genesis, ch. 8, v. 10-11) also mentions a dove that Noah releases to find out if the elements have calmed down. The bird returns to Noah's ark with an olive (oil-bearing) branch in its beak. And this meant that the water was already subsiding and the tops appeared from it trees. Consequently, God's wrath subsided. Thus, the dove became associated in world culture with peace, tranquility, etc.
12. 12. The symbol contains a generalizing principle of revealing the multifaceted content and meaning of phenomena. The mythological, religious and artistic consciousness is permeated with symbols.  For example, one of the main symbols of Christian culture is the cross. The cross is a symbol of the death of God (Christ), his crucifixion, the atonement of the sins of man.
13. 13. In the Old Testament church, crucifixion, as is known, was not used, and, according to custom, they were executed in three ways: stoned, burned alive and hung on a tree. Therefore, "they write about the gallows: "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree" (Deut. 21:23)," explains St. Demetrius of Rostov (Search, part 2, ch. 24). The fourth punishment - beheading with a sword was added to them in the era of the Kings.
14. 14.  And the execution of the cross was then a pagan Greco-Roman tradition, and the Jewish people knew it only a few decades before the birth of Christ, when the Romans crucified their last legitimate king Antigonus. Therefore, in the Old Testament texts there are not and cannot even be any similarities of the cross as an instrument of execution: both from the side of the name, and from the side of the form; but, on the contrary, there is a lot of evidence there: 1) about human deeds, prophetically foreshadowing the image of the Lord’s cross, 2) about known objects, mysteriously denoting the power and tree of the cross, and 3) about visions and revelations, foreshadowing the very suffering of the Lord.
15. 15.    The cross itself, as a terrible instrument of shameful execution, chosen by Satan as the banner of lethality, caused insurmountable fear and horror, but, thanks to Christ the Conqueror, it became a desired trophy, causing joyful feelings. Therefore, Saint Hippolytus of Rome - the Apostolic man - exclaimed: "And the Church has her own trophy over death - this is the Cross of Christ, which she bears on herself", and Saint Paul - the Apostle of tongues - wrote in his Epistle: "I want to boast (.. .) only by the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Gal. 6:14). “Look how longed and cherished this so terrible and reproachful (shameful - Slavs) in ancient times became a sign of the most cruel executions,” testified St. John Chrysostom. 
16. 16.  Already from the first centuries of Christianity, due to the persecution of the followers of the crucified Redeemer, Christians were forced to hide, performing their rituals in secret. And the absence of Christian statehood - the external fence of the Church and the duration of such an oppressed situation were reflected in the development of worship and symbolism.
17. 17. In the southern and eastern parts of the Roman Empire, a tool was used to execute criminals, called the "Egyptian" cross since the time of Moses and resembling the letter "T" in European languages. "The Greek letter T," wrote Count A. S. Uvarov, "is one of the forms of the cross used for crucifixions"
18. 18.  Such an image of the cross did not scare away the pagans, being familiar to them. "Indeed, as can be seen from the Sinai inscriptions," reports Count A.S. Uvarov, the letter was taken as a symbol and as a real image of the cross" (Christian symbolism, part 1, p. 81). In the first centuries of Christianity, of course, it was not the artistic side of the symbolic image that was important, but the convenience of its application to a hidden concept.
19. 19.  In his Epistle, the Apostle Paul teaches that Christians have the opportunity to "take hold of the hope set before us (ie the Cross), which for the soul is, as it were, a safe and strong anchor" (Heb. 6:18-19). This, in the words of the Apostle, "anchor", symbolically covering the cross from the desecration of the unfaithful, and revealing its true meaning to the faithful, as deliverance from the consequences of sin, is our strong hope.
20. 20.  The letter "X" of the Greek alphabet has already served as the basis for monogram symbols since the 2nd century, and not only because it hid the name of Christ; after all, as you know, "ancient writers find the shape of a cross in the letter X, which is called St. Andrew's, because, according to legend, the Apostle Andrew ended his life on such a cross," wrote Archimandrite Gabriel.
21. 21.  Around 1700, God's anointed Peter the Great, wishing to express the religious difference between Orthodox Russia and the heretical West, placed the image of the St. Andrew's Cross on the State Emblem, on his hand seal, on the naval flag, etc. His own explanation says that: "the cross of St. Andrew (accepted) for the sake of that from this Apostle Russia received holy baptism."
22. 22.  It was this form of the six-pointed cross that was depicted on the seal of the governor of the Byzantine Emperor in the city of Korsun. The same type of cross was also widely used in the West under the name "Lorenskoy". For an example from the Russian tradition, let us point out at least the large copper cross of St. Avraamy of Rostov of the 18th century, stored in the Andrei Rublev Museum of Old Russian Art, cast according to iconographic samples of the 11th century.
23. 23.  Until the 9th century inclusive, Christ was depicted on the cross not only alive, resurrected, but also triumphant, and only in the 10th century did images of the dead Christ appear (Fig. 54). From ancient times, crucifixion crosses, both in the East and in the West, had a crossbar to support the feet of the Crucified, and His feet were depicted as nailed each separately with their own nail. The image of Christ with crossed feet, nailed with one nail, first appeared as an innovation in the West in the second half of the 13th century.

Since primitive times, various types of images (sculptural, pictorial, graphic) have been sign and symbolic codes that were used by ancient people to perform rituals, preserve and transmit information. Any significant sound, gesture, thing, event can be either a sign or a symbol.

Signs are generally accepted conventions for objects, phenomena, and actions. Examples of signs are road signs or symbols on geographical maps, sound signals - SOS or an ambulance siren, a variety of gestures, etc.

A symbol is an object, action, etc., revealing some image, concept, idea. The symbol embodies common experiences and ideas for people. A symbol is a synthesis of a sign and an image.

Art speaks to people in the language of symbols. A symbol in art is an artistic image that embodies an idea. A symbol, like a riddle, is multi-valued, its meanings can be revealed indefinitely, unlike a sign, which is understood by everyone in the same way. The depth of understanding of the symbol depends on the person's ability to interpret, on his erudition and intuition.

Musical art speaks to us in the language of sounds. National anthems are musical symbols that embody the unity of the people, their culture, pride in their country.

There were eras in history when people especially often turned to symbols in art. An example is medieval Christian art. In the Middle Ages, the aspiration of man to God was of particular interest. Therefore, the things that surrounded a person interested the artist only to the extent that they were connected with the meaning of Holy Scripture. Many medieval paintings depict a bowl, grapes (wine) and bread - symbols of the sacrament of communion; lily or iris flowers - a symbol of the Mother of God.

The choice of color, color is also symbolic: red-brown was a symbol of everything earthly (clay, earth); red - the color of shed sacrificial blood, the fire of faith; blue or blue symbolized everything heavenly, holy; and green is the color of hope, the color of life, a symbol of consolation, rebirth to a new life.

Portraits, landscapes, still lifes, genre scenes by Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) reflect his rebellious, lonely soul, independent of canons and norms. His work is permeated with a sense of acute anxiety and confusion. The complex inner world of the artist is often revealed through symbols. Van Gogh sought to reflect content through expressive, psychologically rich colors.

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) also used symbolism in his works. The subjects of his still lifes were often musical instruments. Perhaps this is due to the sophistication of their forms, or perhaps with the desire to synthesize painting and music.