The Starry Night - Van Gogh
- Oil painting on canvas
- 100% Hand-painted
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| Author: | Vincent Van Gogh |
|---|---|
| Title: | The Starry Night |
| Original location: | The Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA |
| Year: | 1889 |
| Style: | Post-impresionism |
| Link to the museum (URL): | Museo |
Description
"The Starry Night", an oil painting on canvas measuring 73.7 cm × 92.1 cm, is perhaps the most iconic piece in the canon of Vincent van Gogh's works. Housed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the artwork displays a nocturnal landscape dominated by a moving sky, contrasting with a static village in the foreground. The composition, divided between the cosmos and the earth, tends towards the aerial; the starry and turbulent sky occupies more than two-thirds of the canvas.
Brushstrokes
"The Starry Night" is a testament to Van Gogh's use of the impasto technique, characterized by the application of thick layers of paint, resulting in brushstrokes that almost project from the canvas. The sky is depicted as a series of whirlpools created from circular and spiral brushstrokes that seem to float and move, infusing the painting with a vibrant kinetic energy. The brushstrokes in the foreground are shorter, loaded and agitated, enhancing the sense of contrast between the two elements of the painting.
Style
"The Starry Night" embodies Van Gogh's post-impressionist aesthetic. It defies realistic conventions in favor of a more emotional and subjective view of nature. Shapes are distorted and stylized, colors are used expressively and symbolically, more than to faithfully represent reality. It is a shining example of the artist's interest in color and brushstrokes as a medium to convey feelings and introspection.
History
The work was created in 1889, while Van Gogh was interned at the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France, due to mental health issues. Despite his emotional state, Van Gogh managed to channel his internal torment into a deeply emotional piece of art. Although inspired by the view from his window, the artwork is more an expression of his subjective and emotional mind than a faithful representation of the landscape.
"The Starry Night", despite not being recognized during the artist's lifetime, has gained immense recognition and esteem over time, and is now considered one of the greatest masterpieces of Western art. Its impact is felt not only in the interpretation and criticism of art, but also in its influence on popular culture.