Why it matters
Painted in June 1889 from the east-facing window of his room in the asylum at Saint-Rémy, The Starry Night shows the view just before sunrise, with an imaginary village added from sketches. Called a 'touchstone of modern art', it is one of the most recognisable paintings in the Western canon, yet Van Gogh himself called it a failure in letters to his brother Theo.
Did you know?
- The bright 'star' next to the cypress is Venus, which was visible in the sky at the time.
- Van Gogh had voluntarily admitted himself to the asylum on 8 May 1889, and was given both a bedroom and a ground-floor studio.
- The Museum of Modern Art acquired it in 1941 through the Lillie P. Bliss Bequest.
Based on the Wikipedia article The Starry Night (CC BY-SA 4.0).
