Critical Analysis Starry Night (1889)-Vincent Van Gogh Starry Night is a painting by the Dutch post- impressionist Vincent

Van Gogh. He used oil on canvas to create one of the most replicated and commercialized paintings of all times. Based on several biographies I have read this painting was done completely from memory while he was a patient at an asylum in Saint-Rmy in France. I think that was has always drawn me to this painting is the sentimental attachment that I have to Paris and to France overall. For some reason every time I look at it, it brings back memories of when I used to live there. Also one of my favorite movies is Midnight in Paris and the starry sky from the painting is featured as the night sky of Paris. I was lucky to see this painting in person at the MoMA in New York and it was just breathtaking. Regarding the composition of the painting we can observe that there are a couple of focal elements in it however, it is still well balanced. The main elements that balance the composition are the dark swirly shape on the foreground that is supposed to be the Cathedral of Saint-Rmy and the bright moon on the background containing prominent warm colors. We can say that the balance is asymmetrical. Moreover the sky and the town provide a smooth transition from one to the other, the sky with several similar shapes to that of the moon, and then the town with very simple straight lines. The choice of brushstroke for this painting was clearly one of the most used by Van Gogh in many of his works, a thick and short brush stroke that altogether gave the illusion of flow and movement. This is most noticeable in the sky, where the moon and each of the stars have their circular on halo surrounding it composed of these particular strokes. Seen as a whole we can almost see how the wind blows across the wind. He also used his characteristic circular stroke to depict the cypress tree next to the cathedral. Van Gogh was very risky but very successful about the colors he used for this painting, he was able to push to more than five analogous colors to create a beautiful harmony, and he also used a full range of value of those chosen colors, helping him create depth. This feature is visible in the sky and how he used the darker blues towards the top and the lighter values towards the bottom, closer to the town. Also, he also used thick cross contour lines to create the illusion of volume (e.g. the mountains on the background and the ceilings of the houses) As previously mentioned, Van Gogh painted this while he was in an asylum and from his memory, therefore, the meaning and subject matter can be interpreted different ways: He may have used the thick short brushstroke as a way to represent his anger and his condition, during this time he was experiencing strong symptoms of his epilepsy caused by his excessive consumption of absinthe. Another meaning that could be excerpted from the painting is how the beautiful night sky and the peaceful town he painted can be a representation of how he felt at peace while being at the asylum. The fact that he painted a cypress tree to the left of the cathedral

could be interpreted as a sign of mourning or also the relationship of nature and the heavens. Some have interpreted the starry night in correlation to Josephs dream about the eleven stars that is written on the book of Genesis in the bible. Also, because this was a time when astrology and astronomy were developing he may have painted the stars with some sort of correlation to that. Lastly, another feature open to interpretation can be the choice of colors, he chose a palette of cool analogous colors along with some warms that could potentially also represent the anger and sadness he felt because of his illness. The medium Van Gogh chose for this painting was very common at the time, oil on canvas was extremely popular because of the great characteristic of giving painters time to fix any mistakes they could have made. He used a brush with which he created different styles of brushstrokes (thick, short, circular) that allowed him to create a rich texture and a great sense of depth and movement in this work of art. There are several elements from this painting that I used in my drawing: the choice of color, I decided to use a similar palette of analogous colors for the background and the main figure of my drawing, I think that it would be a shame not to use the original colors of the painting because in my opinion, the colors provide a certain feeling of melancholia that is very characteristic of Van Gogh. I also decided to use the short strokes to create that sense of swirling motion of the sky that I truly enjoy, however, instead of using paint, I decided to use Copic and Touch markers. Additionally, I chose to use the swirling shapes of the sky, and incorporate them as the shapes of the hair that along with cross contour lines allowed me to create that feeling of movement and tri-dimensionality he inherently created.