Look, I have had another dream' he said, I thought I saw the sun, the moon, and eleven stars, bowing to me.
Genesis 37:10.
I can remember waking up in the middle of the night, coated in sweat from a nightmare, gasping for a breath of secure reality. My eyes would snap open and the first thing I would see was my print of "Starry Night- hanging placidly on my wall. Despite Van Gogh's feverish brushstrokes painted within the walls of a Saint-Rémy mental institution, this picture has always had a calming effect on me and on the cold evenings when the rest of the house was silent, I would return to sleep with his jewel-toned moon lighting my way to slumber.
Art is an interesting medium in that it is internalized with a different meaning for each person who views it. Because of the poignant intensity Van Gogh instilled in this painting, it is able to evoke a strong emotional reaction. The tranquil little town in "Starry Night- fills me with the sensation of safety and security. Although it's a place foreign to me, it has the distinct feeling of home, a home that I have never physically been to but one that welcomes my imagination and renews my spirit. The cool, fluid sky sweeps my attention to the stars which are like the eyes of God watching over the village. To live in this place seems like the ultimate peace.
My central point of fascination with the landscape is the cypress tree. It is usually used to symbolize death in works of art but death did not scare the ailing Van Gogh. Rather I see it as his path to heaven. When I was a child, I used to imagine myself hiding in the folds of its flame-like branches, observing the stars bathe the rolling hills and snug town in light. The cypress acts as an anchor to the flowing sky, balancing the picturesque compilation of different memories from various times and places in Van Gogh's life. It is also the most aggressive point in the work, with the leaves writhing in what appears to be a silent agony.