Interpretation is a stage in the work of art criticism in which one identifies the work's expressive qualities, for instance, the meaning in the work, the mood created by the work and the ideas being communicated to the viewer. In essence, effective interpretation is only possible upon a careful analysis and basic evaluation of the work.

A work of art can be very complicated and may be interpreted in different ways by different people. However, in art criticism, one's interpretation is personal, based upon the information one has visually, emotionally and eruditely gathered from the work.