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The Stars in Van Gogh's World

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The Stars in Van Gogh’s World “I often think that the night is more alive and more richly colored than the day .” He demonstrated this ideal through his painting “The Starry Night,” one of the most iconic paintings of nineteenth century. Through this painting, Vincent van Gogh shared a very personal experience with the viewer. The nature of the night became a symbolic image to van Gogh. The representation of the small town resembles the small scale of human life. The Church points directly upward, to the Heavens. Although van Gogh was not mentally stable, “The Starry Night” was created in moments of great clarity to him .
Fig 1, Vincent van Gogh, The Starry Night, 1889. Oil on Canvas. New York Museum of Modern Art. This painting was a composite of different painting and sketches, done by him and by other well-known painters. A great insight to his imagination, this painting challenged many viewers. Many believe this imaged was conceived months after he was in the hospital since he spent a lot of time sight seeing outside his window. Yet, most of the painting was conceived through his own imagination. Both the church and the crescent moon were drawn and painted from his memory, while the hills and cypresses were drawn from realistic perspective. Van Gogh wrote about his desire to paint a starry night to many of his close friends and family members, months before the actual painting was created. After months of contemplating the painting, he finally created the
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