Starry Night

Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh

“It often seems to me that the night is even more richly colored than the day, colored with the most intense violets, blues and greens. If you look carefully, you'll see that some stars are lemony, others have a pink, green, forget-me-not blue glow. And without laboring the point, it's clear to paint a starry sky it's not nearly enough to put white spots on blue-black.” (678, 14 September 1888)

These were the words by the infamous artist Vincent Van Gogh to his brother Theo, describing his now widely appreciated Starry Night. Enigmatic and one of the most famous work of expressionism is now housed in the Museum of Modern Art, New York City since 1941.

While watching the painting there are various thoughts and emotions that come to mind of the observer. There is a constant feeling of movement. The widely perceived silent night sky seems to be bustling with movement in the artist’s eyes. Moreover, while there is movement in the sky the village below seems unaffected and rather stagnant.

The duality of this motion and rest is what gives the painting a balance. Such turbulent movement in the painting also depicts the inner turmoil and the tempestuous nature of the artist’s mind.

After a breakdown resulting in self-mutilation of his left ear, Vincent Van Gogh voluntarily admitted himself to the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole lunatic asylum on 8th May 1889. The year that follows, the artist produced some of the greatest works including the Irises in May 1889, the blue self-portrait, etc. The starry night was painted around mid of June. He wrote to his brother, Theo, to state he had a new study of the Starry night.

He spent a great deal of time studying the view from his ground floor studio in the hospital and depicted it at different times of day under various weather conditions. “These are exaggerations from the point of view of the arrangement, their lines are contorted like those of ancient woodcuts” (805, c. 20 September 1889) he said to his brother in one of his letters which told that he was aware that these paintings were an exercise for developing a style.

The Starry Night is his extensive observation of the night sky, he left Paris and moved for a more rural areas in south France. He could now spend hours contemplating the stars without the interference of gas or electric street lights.

“ This morning I saw the countryside from my window a long time before sunrise, with nothing but the morning star which looked very big” (777, c. 31 May 6 June 1889) He wrote to his sister Willemien van Gogh from Arles.

What one might observe is the striking contrast on the canvas. The starry night and the swirling galaxies along with the small lights in the village are brightening the rather dark theme. It gives the feeling of hope. The theme of redemption or the idea of a happy ending.