Starry Night

One of my favorite pieces of art from my Art Appreciation class from last semester! I'm usually not a fan of modern art, but I do like some of Van Gogh's pieces, such as this one. I love the vibrant blues and yellows and the church steeple in the church. Van Gogh was not a particularly religious fellow, but he said he liked to go out and contemplate the stars (I suppose this could refer to astrology, but I rather doubt it). The stars are brilliant in this piece though, and remind me of Ransom's space travels in C.S. Lewis' Out of the Silent Planet. Ransom is the hero of the story and is awestruck by the beauty of the celestial sphere as he and his two companions travel through space. He even deems the title "space" as too empty and barren a word and prefers to call them "the heavens" because of their wondrous beauty. Another particular feature I like about this painting is the rising steeple of the church. It makes me miss the European towns one would visit or see from the train where you could always tell where the church was amongst the town houses because of the lofty steeples with the crosses on top, pointing towards the heavens.

Starry Night, Vincent Van Gogh