Whether or not an author intends a specific meaning, that does not mean that the meaning isn't there. Roland Barthes discussed this in the 1960s. We always assume author/artist intent is the only proper way to understand something. That discounts how meaning is generated contextually - by the way in which the text is received and reflects the cultural context in which it is produced and consumed. Many artists can barely verbalize why they make art. Relying on them to tell you how to understand something is restrictive and simplistic.