In a small town in France, the walls of an asylum bore witness to the tumultuous journey of a tormented soul. It was the aftermath of Vincent van Gogh's harrowing breakdown on the 23rd of December in 1888, an event that had led him to commit the unthinkable act of self-mutilation, severing his left ear. Haunted by his inner demons and seeking solace, Van Gogh made a courageous decision to admit himself voluntarily to a mental asylum on the 8th of May in 1889.
A former monastery, the asylum provided a haven for the troubled artist. Remarkably, the institution was less than half full at the time of his arrival, allowing him not only a second-story bedroom but also a ground-floor room to serve as his sanctuary—a painting studio.
From the iron-barred window of his room, Van Gogh beheld a captivating view that would inspire him profoundly. Enchanted by the beauty of the sky and the natural world, he wrote to his brother, Theo, "I can see an enclosed square of wheat... above which, in the morning, I watch the sun rise in all its glory." He painted this view 21 times.
In early June, Vincent marveled at the sight of the countryside long before sunrise, with only the morning star illuminating the darkness. He was deeply moved by the luminous presence of Venus in the early hours of dawn, almost as if it were a guiding light in the vast expanse of the universe.
Despite his prolific letter writing, Van Gogh divulged very little about "The Starry Night." He casually mentioned it in a letter to Theo around the 20th of September 1889, referring to it as a "night study." However, he did not include the painting in a batch of artworks he sent to his brother in Paris, opting to save on postage instead. It was only in late November of that year, in a letter to fellow artist Émile Bernard, that he referred to the painting as a "failure." This sentiment likely stemmed from the debates he had with Bernard and Paul Gauguin over artistic expression—Van Gogh favored painting from nature, while Gauguin championed abstraction.
The "vague symbol of human striving" in the painting—the cypress trees—held a deep fascination for Van Gogh. He saw them as rustic and natural obelisks that bridged the realms of heaven and earth. While cypress trees have traditionally been associated with death in European culture, Van Gogh was drawn to their evocative presence and used them as symbolic elements in his artwork.
Many art historians and scholars have offered their interpretations of "The Starry Night," delving into the mind of the artist and the potential influence of his mental struggles on the painting's creation. Some argue that the work reflects Van Gogh's religious mood and visionary state, with elements inspired by apocalyptic themes from the New Testament's Book of Revelation.
Others explore the possibility that Van Gogh's mental illness, likely temporal lobe epilepsy, played a role in the creation of this masterpiece. They see the painting as an expression of heightened reality, where the artist's electrical impulses in the brain were akin to fireworks, illuminating the canvas with mesmerizing swirls and patterns.
For Van Gogh, the night sky held an almost spiritual significance. He believed that life on Earth was interconnected with the cosmos and that hope lay in the stars. His longing for a realm beyond this earthly existence found its expression in the luminous night sky. The painting's swirls and expressionistic forms became a means for him to reach out for the infinite, exploring the boundary between the tangible and the ethereal.
Van Gogh's art, including "The Starry Night," was an embodiment of his unyielding passion, his relentless search for beauty and meaning, and his belief in something greater beyond the confines of our mortal world. It was a testament to the artist's profound emotions and his desperate quest for solace in the face of inner turmoil.
After completing "The Starry Night," Van Gogh sent the painting to Theo in Paris, along with other artworks. Tragically, Theo passed away just six months after Vincent, leaving his widow, Jo, to safeguard Van Gogh's artistic legacy. The painting went through various hands over the years, eventually finding its place in the Museum of Modern Art, where it stands today as one of the most recognizable and cherished works in Western art—an enduring testament to the brilliance of Vincent van Gogh and the power of art to transcend time and touch the very depths of the human soul.
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