One of the most famous paintings - "Starry Night" by Van Gogh - is currently located in one of the halls of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. It was created in 1889 and is one of the most famous works of the great artist.
History of the painting
Starry Night is one of the most famous and popular works of fine art of the 19th century. The painting was painted in 1889 and it perfectly conveys the unique and inimitable style of the greatest Dutch artist.
In 1888, after an attack on Paul and a cut off earlobe, Vincent van Gogh was given a sad diagnosis - temporal lobe epilepsy. This year, the great artist lived in France, in the town of Arles. After the inhabitants of this city turned to the city hall with a collective complaint about the "violent" painter, Vincent Van Gogh ended up in Saint-Remy-de-Provence - a village for the mentally ill people. For a year of living in this place, the artist painted more than 150 paintings, among which this most famous masterpiece of fine art.
Starry Night, Van Gogh. Description of the picture
A distinctive feature of the picture is incredible dynamism, which eloquently conveys the emotional experiences of the great artist. Images in the moonlight at that time had their ancient traditions, and yet no artist could convey such power and power of a natural phenomenon as Vincent Van Gogh. "Starry Night" is not written spontaneously, like many works of the master, it is carefully thought out and arranged.
The incredible energy of the whole picture is concentrated mainly in the symmetrical, single and continuous movement of the sickle of the moon, stars and the sky itself. The overwhelming inner experiences are surprisingly balanced thanks to the trees depicted in the foreground, which, in turn, balance the entire panorama.
The style of the picture
It is worth paying utmost attention to the surprisingly synchronized movement of the heavenly bodies in the night sky. Vincent Van Gogh specially portrayed stars significantly enlarged to transmit the flickering light of the entire halo. The light from the moon also looks pulsating, and spiral curls very harmoniously convey a stylized image of the galaxy.
The whole riot of the night sky is balanced, thanks to the dark landscape of the city and cypress trees, which frame the picture from below. The city at night and the trees effectively complement the panorama of the night sky, giving it a feeling of heaviness and gravity. Of particular importance is the village depicted in the lower right corner of the picture. He seems serene in relation to the dynamic firmament.
Equally important is the color scheme of the painting “Starry Night” by Van Gogh. Lighter shades blend harmoniously with a dark foreground. A special technique of painting with strokes of various lengths and directions makes this picture more expressive in comparison with the previous works of this artist.
Reasoning about the painting "Starry Night" and the work of Van Gogh
Like many masterpieces, Van Gogh's Starry Night almost immediately became fertile ground for all sorts of interpretations and discussions. Astronomers began to count the stars depicted in the picture, trying to determine which constellation they belong to. Geographers unsuccessfully tried to find out what kind of city is depicted at the bottom of the work. However, the fruits of research, neither one nor the other, were successful.
It is only known for certain that, painting "Starry Night", Vincent stepped back from the usual manner of writing from nature.
Another interesting fact is that the creation of this picture, in the opinion of scientists and researchers, was influenced by the ancient legend about Joseph from the Old Testament. Although the artist was not considered a fan of theological teachings, the theme of eleven stars eloquently appears in the painting “Starry Night” by Van Gogh.
Many years have passed after the great artist created this picture, and a programmer from Greece created an interactive version of this painting masterpiece. Thanks to special technology, with the touch of your fingers you can control the flow of colors. The sight is amazing!
Vincent Van Gogh. The painting "Starry Night." Does it have a hidden meaning?
Books and songs are written about this picture; it is also in electronic editions. And, perhaps, it is difficult to find a more expressive artist than Vincent Van Gogh. The painting "Starry Night" is the clearest evidence of this. This masterpiece of fine art still inspires poets, musicians and other artists to create unique works.
There is still no consensus on this picture. Whether the disease affected its writing, whether there is any hidden meaning in this work, the current generation can only guess about it. It is possible that this is just a picture that the artist’s sore mind saw. Nevertheless, this is a completely different world, accessible only to the eyes of Vincent Van Gogh.