Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night

Opening this weekend at the Museum of Modern Art in New York is an exhibition of Vincent Van Gogh's night paintings.
The immense tactical appeal of Van Gogh's swirling brushstrokes never fails to draw me into his world. I am reminded of the scene in Akira Kurosawa's film Dreams in which the camera brings you into the vibrant landscape of Van Gogh's mind. Vincent Van Gogh has given our world much to dream about.


Vincent Van Gogh
The Starry Night Over the Rhône
oil on canvas 1889
Musée d'Orsay, Paris

" This work was made toward the beginning of the 12-day, or 12-night, stint of painting outdoors after dark that culminated in the hallucinatory fireworks of “Starry Night,” wheeling freely, splintering the velvety blue."
-Roberta Smith in the New York Times



Crows from Akira Kurosawa's Dreams


Vincent Van Gogh
The Starry Night
oil on canvas 1889

"Van Gogh discovered new colors everywhere, and especially at night. Peripatetically, briefly yet fulsomely, this little show explores his special relationship with darkness. It provides a view of the tenderness, urgency and brilliance at the core of his art, as well as the openness to nature that set it aflame."
-Roberta Smith in the New York Times


Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night continues through Jan. 5 at the Museum of Modern Art, 11 West 53rd Street, Manhattan, (212) 708-9400, moma.org (Please note: Gallery occupancy is limited and timed entry is necessary to visit this exhibition. Your regular Museum admission will permit you to all other Museum galleries, exhibitions, and films, but access to Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night will require a separate, timed-entry ticket (at no additional charge), available at the exhibition entrance on the second floor. The next available entry time will be noted on this ticket. Timed-entry tickets are first come, first served, so it is possible that no tickets to Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night will be available at the time of your visit.

Members and accompanying guests are not required to obtain timed tickets. Simply present your membership card and/or member guest admission ticket at exhibition entrance.)

More at:
-Van Gogh at moma.org
-Roberta Smith in the New York Times