Van Gogh's Starry Night is one of the most replicated and well know images in modern culture. It was painted in 1889 while Van Gogh was in an asylum at Saint Remy for mental illness. While in the asylum he converted a cell into a makeshift studio and painted about 150 images including most of his famous ones, including Irises, Cypresses and the Starry Night.
In his younger years Van Gogh wanted to dedicate his life to evangelization of those in poverty. He spent time as a teacher and then became a missionary worker in a very poor region. His early works produced paintings with only sombre colors to them. It was not until he encountered impressionism in Paris that he began to add brighter colors and become the unique painter that he was. It is believed that the 11 stars in Starry Night and other similar works were based on his religious beliefs. In Genesis 39:9 "And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethen, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and , behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars make obeisance to me".
In his life Van Gogh produced more than 2000 works in which 900 were paintings. While he was alive he sold one painting only.
What i like most about Starry Night is the object on the left of the town. To me i have always thought of the image as a dark castle overlooking the town at night. Of course after doing research on the painting and the artist i learned that the image was not a castle but a cypress tree. This tree/castle image is huge in scale compared to the rest of objects and add depth to the painting. Most of the colors are dark and cool and add a complement to Van Gogh's favorite color yellow, which he uses in most of his works. In the center of the painting there is a church which adds a peaceful tone to a somewhat erratic painting. When i look at this image as a whole there is no clear cut focus point. There is almost a focal point everywhere in the painting. Of course the uniqueness of his brush strokes is what makes Van Gogh so famous. In this painting particularly the swirls that he uses to make the clouds and the different colors and hues around the stars and moon make this painting so spectacular.
The only thing that i found out about the type of paint in this painting was that it was an oil painting. And because Van Gogh had tried to commit suicide a few months earlier by drinking his paint i know that it was a lead oil paint. Other than that it was all i could find.
2 comments:
Wow, really good history on Van Gogh! I knew he was troubled but had no idea just how much. I also like your interpretation of the eleven stars. I can appreciate art so much more when I understand the meaning in it. Perhaps we never know precisely what was in the artist's mind but you did a great job of speculating based on your obviously extensive knowledge of Van Gogh.
I did'nt know he painted Starry Night in an asylum. Good back ground info!
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