Van Gogh And The Colors Of The Night

Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night

Throughout his career, Vincent van Gogh attempted the paradoxical task of representing night through color and tonality. His procedure followed the trend set by the Impressionists of "translating" visual light effects with various color combinations, yet this goal was grafted onto his desire to interweave the visual and the metaphorical in order to produce fresh and original works of art. These different artistic concerns found themselves powerfully bound together in Van Goghs nocturnal and twilight paintings and drawings. This illuminating volume, published to accompany the first exhibition to focus on this aspect of Van Goghs career, presents new insight on Van Goghs depictions of night landscapes, interior scenes and the effects of both artificial and natural light on their surroundings. Representing all periods of the artists career, this volume features more than 100 images of superlative quality, including large reproductions of works by Van Gogh, details of iconic paintings and images of works by other artists that were important to the development of Van Goghs oeuvre. Essays by the exhibition organizers provide historical and personal contexts for better understanding the artists motives and offer in-depth studies of the technical and stylistic aspects of Van Goghs work.
Vincent van Gogh was born in 1853 in The Netherlands. His career as an artist lasted only 10 years, but he produced almost 2,000 paintings and works on paper during this brief period, many of them described or sketched in his extensive correspondence with his brother Theo. Van Gogh is most celebrated for his bold use of color and expressive painting technique. He spent his last years in the south of France, where he painted many of his most famous works. He died in Auvers-sur-Oise, just north of Paris, on July 29, 1890.