You definitely can! geom_blank is your friend:
library(tidyverse)
ggplot() +
geom_blank()
That'll get you a big, grey nothing. Then you can add some scales:
ggplot() +
geom_blank() +
scale_x_continuous(limits = c(1, 5), name = 'Best. X axis. Ever.') +
scale_y_continuous(limits = c(10, 20), name = 'This Y axis could use some work...') +
ggtitle('Ta-da!', subtitle = 'A work of art!')
Hope that helps!