Better Know: The Starry Night | The Art Assignment | PBS Digital Studios

[@skyemiddletonx9006]

"but, to me Van Gogh is the finest painter of them all. Certainly the most popular, great painter of all time. The most beloved, his command of colour most magnificent. He transformed the pain of his tormented life into ecstatic beauty. Pain is easy to portray, but to use your passion and pain to portray the ecstasy and joy and magnificence of our world, no one had ever done it before. Perhaps no one ever will again. To my mind, that strange, wild man who roamed the fields of Provence was not only the world's greatest artist, but also one of the greatest men who ever lived."

[@juliusnicdao6391]

You watch too much doctor who

[@kimothemo]

“Sorry for the beard”

[@squid3342]

Skye Middletonx DOCTOR WHOOOOOOOOOOO I was literally reading this thinking ‘I feel like I’ve heard this from somewhere before’

[@thelaurlife]

Best episode 🙈

[@DoctorWho753]

I was searching for this comment.

[@Coopella7]

There was this Japanese author (forgot the name, but I did write it down so I could look it up if you'd like), who wrote an incredibly boring, but incredibly interesting book about Van Gogh. He visited every single spot where Van Gogh painted and came to conclusion, based on the scenery in the painings, that sun positions were inacurate. He then realized that wherever theres a Sun in Van Gogh's painting, there is a church in real life and vice versa. Following that, Starry Night has 12 "stars" (11 stars and one glowing moon), which can be translated to 12 Apostles. The reason I said the book is very boring because it focuses on details like coordinates, lots and lots of numbers, but once you get past that, the conclusion is really incredible, but I've never heard anyone talk about this, except for my art history professor

[@yonamcorleone4639]

Harley Quinn I'd really like to know the name of author if you don't mind looking it up :)

[@Coopella7]

Yonam Corleone sure, I'll post it tomorrow, I have to look through my old notebooks from the art history class

[@Coopella7]

Google made me do it ok quick update: I can't for the life of me find the page where I wrote it down, but I haven't forgotten and I'll ask my professor as soon as the next semester starts

[@peteholder2805]

Van Gogh left seminary studies to pursue painting,so...

[@adrienmckiry7883]

Harley Quinn

[@MollyElvishQueen]

That, as a Dutch person, was one of the closest pronounciations I've ever heard from a non-Dutch speaker. Bravo!

[@IsraelCountryCube]

I remember painting this in 2012 I don’t know what happened to the picture but I think I destroyed it out of anger at my mom well now I feel bitter sad because I destroyed what I made so stupid I was.

[@vampork]

My son's homeopath doesn't speak Dutch but her pronounciation is spot on!! 🕯️💌🤗🐼🙏🎆

[@vampork]

@@IsraelCountryCube that is pretty much the daily exercise from the book "The Artist's Way". Bravo! (I know, shame, tho 🙏🎆🥂) xx

[@McJaews]

I always thought the sky in Starry Night reminded me of how I used to see the night sky before I got glasses. Tiny dots of light bloom to many times the size. Street lights and traffic lights turn a night time cityscape into an ocean of yellows, reds, and greens. I don't know if Van Gogh had perfect vision, though.

[@Thekomokoro]

Maybe he was crying. The tears in his eyes might have caused light sensitivity. I bet he was severely depressed during those times.

[@hinakhabalooch]

James agreed I also see blur things when I don't wear glasses maybe he has vison prb

[@DonnaBarrHerself]

Aren't Christmas lights wonderful with glasses off!

[@titaniamia7111]

This is what i'm thinking too...i'm nearsighted so this painting reminds me of what i see without glasses....maybe Van Gogh is the same or perhaps he was crying that it blurs his sight...??...we will never know..

[@virtualbro8571]

@@DonnaBarrHerself yeah!!!😂😂😂🌿

[@BeyondtheRecord]

3:33 missed opportunity to say "gauguin was gau-gone"

[@theartassignment]

hehehe

[@BastionNulls]

Maybe she was afraid of making her viewers gau-roan.

[@hailiewatts8981]

That is true

[@josemoraes8980]

@@hailiewatts8981 grag´! you run" :-)

[@randomuploadsism]

LOL

[@nisoar]

"Looking at the stars always makes me dream, as simply as I dream over the black dots representing towns and villages on a map. Why, I ask myself, shouldn’t the shining dots of the sky be as accessible as the black dots on the map of France? Just as we take a train to get to Tarascon or Rouen, we take death to reach a star. We cannot get to a star while we are alive any more than we can take the train when we are dead. So to me it seems possible that cholera, tuberculosis and cancer are the celestial means of locomotion. Just as steamboats, buses and railways are the terrestrial means. To die quietly of old age would be to go there on foot.” ― Vincent Van Gogh

[@theartassignment]

Thanks for including the full quote, which is indeed much better than my abridged version.

[@sangeetarsoubans]

thank you 🙋

[@jupindersingh1913]

Thanks really inspiring

[@RachelDavis705]

What an interesting mind he had.

[@ArtHistorywithAlder]

Beautiful, thanks

[@user-on6db4rf4s]

The Starry Night was one of the first paintings that left a big impression on me. I saw it from books when I was a kid, and it never left me since.

[@Domdrok]

This is the painting that let me know I liked art. Before, I thought art was one of those things I’d never understand. Years later I saw the Dr. Who episode with him and it affected me deeply. One of the things I love about this style is how your brain kind of “finishes” it. Man, so good.

[@dicleyuksel3394]

"Of course, it is not enough to put white dots on a black background to depict to starry night" said Vincent. My admireness getting more and more everyday to this man

[@artistryiscomingback]

Looking at these I cannot believe he was an unsuccessful artist in life, especially since he was post-impressionist and this style didn't come as a huge shift. Seeing all these scenes almost brought me to tears, they're gorgeous.

[@theartassignment]

I agree and also I completely understand how Van Gogh and how artists at all times do not necessarily get their due. Van Gogh had all of the advantages, really, with a brother in the art dealing business (and to support him), and with connections through other artists who admired his work. But his career wasn't that long, and it didn't have the chance to gain renown in such a short time span. We can credit his sister-in-law, Johanna, Theo's widow, for dispensing his paintings and promoting his work: www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-woman-who-brought-van-gogh-to-the-world-66805589/

[@jasonhowes75]

Vincent van Gogh was way ahead of his time no one understood him RIP to a great artist his paintings live forever

[@audaciouspert1772]

I just escaped this world and landed in Van gogh's world in 8mins. Thanks for this video

[@theartassignment]

The Van Gogh Museum has this amazing site where you can read and search all of Van Gogh's surviving correspondence, in their original languages, English translation, original manuscript images, and related artworks. Invaluable resource: vangoghletters.org/vg/

[@AlanKlughammer]

A couple of years ago the Van Gogh Museum had a traveling show of very high quality 3d printed reproductions. while I am sure these were not as good as the originals, they were head and shoulders above looking at images on a computer screen. Amazing artist and interesting life. The curator of the museum gave a slightly different story of the loss of Van Gogh's ear...

[@cutekittycat9201]

As a student who has an Art A level, your videos on artists and their paintings, as well as the art assignments are extremely helpful and take my art knowledge one step further

[@imiburrell5694]

I was thinking the same!

[@TopFloorEricc]

A pragmatist asks “what does it mean?” while an artist asks “how does it feel?”. Van Gogh is so popular because he defines what it is to be an artist. Ironically, Starry Night was just another painting in his repertoire that they didn’t particularly like. It goes to show that if you express how you feel you will make great art.

[@AnnaLVajda]

Yeah I think his one of the skull with the cigarette was my favourite but I had a starry night poster in my room years ago since the blue matched my bedspread. I liked Klimt too.

[@Smg3sleftbootycheek]

Bruh idk I'm tryna complete my art homework

[@JoRiver11]

When I saw The Starry Night in person I found myself weeping in front of it, for reasons that I cannot articulate. I had no expectations about the experience of seeing it, which probably helped.

[@mineola_]

Super interesting episode, I really liked it. And I want to commend you on your pronunciation, it's one of the best non-native ones I have heard.

[@flinterdun]

I second this, both on the episode and pronunciation.

[@maximthefox]

He's simply the best painter that ever existed. His paintings make my heart sing. They're rated so exceedingly highly yet imo he's still underrated.

[@Mooncak]

I literally have a art exam tomorrow and I literally need to write an essay on my chosen painting. A few weeks back I chose starry night by Vincent Van Gogh and to this point I haven't even looked at any information about him.Then this video pops up out of nowhere I swear either there is a god up there of KZbin has just found a way to read the minds of its viewers. Thank you so much

[@Mooncak]

Literally....

[@vanafindiel6665]

I love the texture of Van Gogh’s paintings! I was so moved when I saw his paintings up close in a museum!

[@dj586858]

Instead of feeling small when I look up at the night sky's silent beauty, I feel connected & want to know the secrets that seem to be hiding up there. Perhaps corny but heartfelt. Vincent's heart apparently felt something different & it was, & still is, amazing. What a gift to be able to express those feelings for all the world to see, a world that also can look up at that very same sky. Sarah, thank you. You are the perfect teacher.

[@ArtHistorywithAlder]

Beautifully said!

[@eugeniob.1151]

Questo per me é il miglior video su Van Gogh e il suo maestoso dipinto, grazie!

[@myopinionsarefacts]

This is my favorite painting, it's so calm and beautiful

[@petrajarosova9244]

I always thought this painting is beautiful, but that one Doctor Who episode made it, quite possibly, my favourite painting of all time. And thank you for this video, it's really informative.

[@francesoliver4012]

Petra Jarošová I cry every time I see that episode oh my gosh

[@mistyminnie5922]

that's the only doctor who scene i've seen but it made me cry real tears ;-;

[@misspinkpunkykat]

My grade school art teacher was OBSESSED with this painting....To the point she ever showed us any other paintings or any other artists.

[@eliana93fer]

This was great! I love how your videos remind me I love art and inspire me to get back to it, so thank you!

[@julyuhhh6385]

Eliana Fernandez same

[@user-iv2fg7ne5p]

I know nothing about art and painting, but there are paintings like those of Van Gogh that attract me, without knowing why. Some of them are gorgeous. And great video by the way

[@dvd11811]

I always thought Van Gogh's paintings, especially with the swirls, captured the energy of the moment. Since energy can be neither created nor destroyed, it is eternal. The eternal moment is indivisible and this is what Van Gogh was describing.

[@sukritim9546]

is it true that his last words were "la tristesse durera toujours" or "the sadness will last forever" bc it makes me emo

[@jasmin0930]

Sukriti M I believe Theo said those were his last words. 😢

[@laurinojp595]

Whats language is that?

[@General.Apeshit]

“But I could have told you, Vincent This world was never meant for one as beautiful as you”

[@marhanimartchannel369]

Wow!!Vincent van Gogh has a brilliant portfolio of sketches. He was certainly one of the more busy artists of his time, producing a huge body of work. His sketches seem to chronical his day-to-day life.

[@pbsvoices]

I did not know about the interpretations of the swirls going in a physics direction. So neat!

[@amandahallman1091]

Yeah he depicted turbulence so well it looks like it’s moving. In many of his paintings, the light moves, the sky, etc

[@Moodboard39]

It's the unconscious mind

[@nannyalberte]

I am but no means an art expert, but I do love it and find it interesting. So I'm very grateful for this entertaining and fascinating essays! Thank you! I watch them all, I never comment because I do playlists, but just know your hard work is very much appreciated!

[@lunevermeil1400]

Metabolize is a great word for art leading to art. I feel changed by degrees whenever I truly sit and absorb art.

[@Hailstormand]

Oh goodness, this painting continues to captivate me years after I first saw it with young eyes.

[@guslevy3506]

My three favorite artists are Vincent, El Greco and Norman Rockwell. Norman makes me literally feel nostalgia for things I never experienced. El Greco makes me feel the incredible power of Faith, though I am an agnostic man. And, Vincent makes me feel nature for places and scenes that I have never seen or been. As for The Starry Night...like others, I immediately feel the power of the stars and sky when I see the painting: It is literally a priceless object because it has that incredible power that most people can feel. On a side note, one of the greatest experiences of my life was being stoned on the Big Island past midnight and laying down on an open grassy field under the universe above me - the Milky Way and the lights of the universe were so clear and bright that I felt vertigo...and smiled as I accepted it with no fear. I felt like I was flying amongst the stars...

[@AnAbundanceofCoffee]

This was one of the best, most informative and most articulate videos I've seen in a while. Thank you for this!

[@AmorSciendi]

I was just at a pretty cool Van Gogh exhibit in Berlin. Great video. I particularly liked the breakdown of the composition

[@satyadivyach4544]

Thank you for such an awesome video. I really love Vincent Van Gogh's art, especially "The starry night". The beauty I see in that painting is that he created a turbulence, something dynamic, opposed to the static nature, which is usually the case when it comes to paintings. He shows us the vastness and the superiority of the world around and beyond. And most of all he showed us what he saw. It's almost impossible to see the same world as someone else, but Vincent Van Gogh was successful in showing us his world. Thanks a lot Art Assignment and Mrs. Green for making such an insightful video.

[@AlleyBetwixt]

Literally just got Loving Vincent in the mail yesterday from Netflix. Watching it tonight!

[@myopinionsarefacts]

van Gogh is one of the few really famous artist I feel lives up to the hype. He isn't trying to recreate the way things real look, and that definitely makes him stand out from other artists at his time.

[@margaretguillory]

I saw this several years ago in Houston when it toured with a MOMA exhibit. I wanted to touch it and feel the textural paint. I didn't of course, but I was surprised with how small it was, because to me, it was always such a large work.

[@KannikCat]

I cannot give this enough thumbs up. I love the breadth of this, from the (very important) context to the person to the breakdown of balance, diagonals, and technique. I've a new appreciation for this piece, and it made me reconsider my views and, even better, my interpretations of it. Thank you Sarah! Looking forward to more of these. :)

[@emiliebouchard5594]

I have to say, out of all the "better know" or "case for" videos, this is my favourite! I always felt impacted by this piece but could never put the words as to why, but this does it! :)

[@AyeshaAht]

this made my Art exam so easy, and i actually learned quite a lot than what my teacher had told me. you have explained everything in so much detail and simple language :)

[@jimnc9554]

This painting portray the night in beautiful way that leave wondering how blind I am for not seeing things from other people’s perspective and how powerful and enlightening it could be

[@mg3873]

Even without watching this video, I knew Van Gogh. He was a childhood favorite artist. His life story is depressing and upsetting. His works including the Starry Night is one of the best and most recognizable works of any artistic era.

[@justtryingmybest3479]

The Starry Night was painted in 1889. Many other historical events happened this year. List at least 2 of these events. (0:36-1:14) Vincent Van Gogh was part of a group of artists who would later become known as Post-Impressionists. This literally means "after the impressionists." What were the Post-Impressionists interested in showing with their art? (1:25) How did Van Gogh describe the night as opposed to the day? (2:56) Where was Van Gogh when he painted The Starry Night? (3:39) In what ways is The Starry Night not accurate to how Van Gogh would've seen this scene in real life? List 2 differences. (4:00-4:39) What paint technique was used for the sky in this painting? (5:04) What does The Starry Night teach the person who views it? (6:10) What was the most interesting thing you learned in the video?

[@DennisCNolasco]

Wow, this was a fantastic analysis of Vincent and his painting, thanks!

[@ArtHistorywithAlder]

Great video, so much good info surrounding this piece! I love viewing The Starry Night from the perspective of how the night sky feels, as mentioned in the video. So much emotion.

[@iancasti]

Yours is perhaps my favorite channel on KZbin and this episode is an example of why that is so. You are so enlightening and insightful. Plus the way you deliver such insights are so clear and eloquent! So happy this is the episode posted today on my birthday. I admire Van Gogh and I also admire you and what this channel offers. Can't wait for the next episode! :)

[@tvs5862]

When I saw it, it was in exhibited in a dark room with single strong light. What I did not realise was that the glossy varnish over the heavily textured paint would create specular highlights that make the sky shimmer as the viewer moves and interacts with the work. This astonished me, the way the night sky sparkled. I was held transfixed by the work for a prolonged period as the depth and beauty of the work slowly revealed itself to me.

[@patricksputnick5094]

To me The swirls are done by him to show the flow of everything, the forces of nature at work. He may have been a man with many internal agonies, but his moments of creation and observations are imho probably what gave him some peace of mind, meaning and a sense of purpose. And I believe that as a collector of Japanese art he most certainly must have had his ways and a desire of observing nature. Which manifests itself in an almost meditative manner. The Japanese have a word for this observing, or/and experiencing of something in nature, a term which I do not remember. This just my 2 cents. In the end of the day I didnt now the man, nor am I familiar with what he has written.

[@surabhisalunkhepatil584]

Patrick Sputnick yugen?

[@khoinguyen619]

Yeah I love this painting so much!

[@strawberrymilkshake4576]

I remember the time i played Atlantica Online and most of my online time just hanging around on this outside Van Gogh's dungeon map with The Starry Night as the skybox. It's truly beautiful and this painting is my #1 favorite ever.

[@randomuploadsism]

The beautiful thing about Starry Night is it depicts how a warm, starry night in the countryside FEELS rather than actually looks.

[@ishaanthewonderboy]

The Doctor Who episode with Van Gogh was really good too

[@laurenskylartran6357]

I really love these videos! Sarah's voice is so soothing and I love how you make art so easy to learn. Thank you!

[@PoseidonXIII]

Awesome!! I love it when you guys have a new video out, you never disappoint.

[@RyanB1987]

I saw this painting at the Van Gough museum in 2009, beautiful painting.

[@FarmleagueSportscards]

very well spoken and I thank you for that I aman artist who worships his work love what he done and how he expressed himself he was also a well known pencil artist and his early work many see as dark and gloomy I see as reality as he drew and painted many peoplw working and many many times he depicted a bent back showing the working class as he did with the miners in his earliest work in pencil he chose dark palettes for many landscapes whick I only once again only see reality as he seen it. his impasto style is a hard technigue as he did it ,it consist of control and passion with a very short brush stroke achieving his wonders ,it has taken me a lifetime to conceive it and duplicate it best that I can,amongst all the masters he is the one and only that gets my total attn. and my love. Agiant fan of pbs I watch it daily and applaud you all for your daily content I watch here in Alabama where it is in my hometown of Montgomery where I grew up with it and first painting along my second love Bob Ross for so many years befor acquiring sev. art scholarships by age 11 I now continue my art as a 48 yr. victim of a stroke who lost my painting/drawing hand which is now paralyzes but my love for art pushed me to train my other hand to paint as I continue giving much credit for my life of art to pbs and I thank you more than words can say

[@JamesStoddah]

This is beautiful. Wonderfully curated too. Thank you.

[@Research0digo]

McLean came to perform at our San Diego Wild Animal park years ago. I and my then young children were enthralled by his melodies and lyrics, but he wasn't even finished caressing our ears with Starry Starry Night before many of us on that expanse of drying grass were if not sobbing - teary eyed. What an emotion. I wouldn't trade that song for all the Mozarts in the world.

[@cruxcommissa]

I'm so glad these videos are free.

[@Moodboard39]

No shit is KZbin lol

[@anajuliafontenele12]

as vezes minha cabeça nao me deixa descansar... nesses momentos eu recorro para seus videos e de alguma forma eles me acalmam o suficiente. Obrigada :)

[@kristenpaul9063]

Wow what video! That was so moving.

[@Aplomb1972]

I can always see a sky with stars. But this one , I can feel it.

[@dianerose7176]

I haven't read through all the comments, so forgive me if I'm being duplicative. I've seen more than one site theorizing that the swirling sky was inspired by Hokusai's The Great Wave off Kanagawa, which Van Gogh had seen and admired.

[@hellosunshine305]

As cliche is it is, I absolutely love Van Gogh. Both his work and his story are beautifully tragic♥️

[@ZeinaIan]

I was so excited to see this in my subscriptions. This is my favourite artwork of all time and I have loved it since I was a little kid (I'm 22 now). Thank you for making a video on it. ❤

[@TeamWalsh]

I cried a little. What a great piece.

[@paeden5431]

The narrator's voice is relaxing, the content interesting. Love my 1st time on this channel.

[@witzelasper2821]

Great video Starry Night has always been my favorite painting

[@anvaysudame7980]

Would love to see Five Favorite Works of Art with Evan Puschak (The Nerdwriter)He has constantly brought good art to a wider audience and the format of the 5 favorite... videos would be perfect for it

[@theartassignment]

He would be great! Thanks for the rec and will see if I can make it happen. I have some good Five Favorites in the works for 2018.

[@anvaysudame7980]

The Art Assignment looking forward to them :-)

[@letsfindsomepeace9207]

Please make this happen already.

[@carrotsandcucumbers8214]

That's a great discovery. I like the use of paint

[@NoelleMar]

To be honest, this brought tears to my eyes.

[@julyuhhh6385]

Noelle Matteson same im actually crying right now

[@fercortes1d]

I loved this video. The starry night is actually my favorite painting

[@wii3willRule]

This is probably my favorite channel. Great work, as always!

[@shahidhassanboni3555]

Girl you are amazing. i am loving the information

[@julietatonello]

I learned a lot watching this video, thank you!

[@lorenabpv]

today i was planning my upcoming ny trip and thought to myself that i wanted to see starry night. odd coincidence, and now i wanna go see it even more, so thanks :)

[@theartassignment]

I also have a NY trip coming up soon, and was planning on making a pilgrimage, too. Let us know how the original stacks up when you return! There are some other really good shows up now at MoMA, for what it's worth: Stephen Shore, Thinking Machines, Carolee Schneeman.

[@lorenabpv]

thanks for the recs :) i'll check them out as well (and my trip is next week, so i'll hopefully bring back some thoughts by the time the next episode is up)

[@dorksalami]

Thank you so much for your insightful analysis. Aaaaaand for the intro to that Don Mclean song. Even better to know it played in Tupac's room while he passed. Powerful stuff.

[@st3bx]

Thank you for making this video. It lightened my mood. Such beauty.

[@malihatahir1866]

Beautiful!

[@honeysucklecat]

I love the Van Gogh scene in Akira Kurosawa’s Dreams with Martin Scorsese as Vincent

[@yvonnebouwhuis9419]

I love the starry night, I think I have made copies of it more than any other painting. When I just need to paint I find myself making the big swoosh of stars. I love the starry night over the Rhone more, mostly because it seemed to follow me around when I was doing my masters. it felt like painting was looking out for me. I saw it twice in that time and never in its home museum. It’s like it was following me from one continent to another and was where I needed it at that time. I know logically museum schedules are planned ages in advance but it still felt personal in some small way.

[@maxburrage6734]

As much as I love art video. Art can never be analyzed. It’s simply something you just have to enjoy.

[@jltacknroll]

I really really enjoyed this.

[@jasonpetersharpe]

Beautiful 💐

[@adrianagflores5587]

My 12y old daughter’s favorite painting since she was a toddler. She paints and doodles the starry night and saved her own money to buy a painted replica and put it in her room.

[@ericabuchanan7260]

I recently watched a vlogbrothers video where John asked what we like, what we want less of and what we want more of. I am an elementary art teacher and I would love to see some more AA videos that could be played at schools. I absolutely love this channel and would love to see an AA that whole schools or classrooms could do, more cooking videos that were just a bit shorter and ones that don’t mention anything sexual (for example Andy Warhol’s foot fetish, just maybe a sub category for elementary levels)? You guys do some pretty amazing things and I wonder daily how on earth you guys juggle it all. Thanks so much for bringing art to the masses. Nerd fighters rule!!

[@anneshields2010]

Vincent is my most favourite artist I have a print of his sunflowers in my kitchen wish he could see how famous and loved he’s become today

[@Joshlama]

One thing that surprised me when I saw Starry Night was that its still vibrant, but it looks like it's still was painted today. The night sky still shimmers which is an effect you have to see in person. I didn't see the asthetic importance until i saw that.

[@al-amindinu4281]

I was looking for it’s story,and here i got.I just drawn it today,obviously not in sir Van Gogh style but i tried my best for it.

[@tiger_844]

loving Vincent was suuuuuch a good movie!!!!

[@karenmeador7807]

Wonderful episode - thank you. Please do one in this vein about a sculptor 🙏🏻

[@mxrclxst]

I like the unnatural pace of this video truncating the breaths and speeding up the delivery.

[@cassandrarocha7369]

My favorite painting ever. My dream is to one day own the original

[@carlaafonso6194]

Always love your videos!

[@Skukkix23]

Tbh I just think most people never saw a clear night sky without light pollution from a city.