Vincent Van Gogh's Night in The Cafe

The Night Cafe

Vincent William Van Gogh was an artist who is widely known for his art work. He created many paintings which are still very famous. One of his most famous paintings is called The Starry Night. He was born on March 30, 1853 in Zundert, Netherlands. Only after his death did his paintings receive any recognition (Vincent Van Gogh : Dutch Painter). One of his most interesting paintings in my opinion is the night café. Although he deemed this painting worthless it allowed people insight into what was going on in his head as did many of his other art pieces. He painted this two years before his death on July 29, 1890. “The Night Café" was painted in September 1888 while he was living in Arles, South France”(Zelazko).

 "Vincent Van Gogh was 35 years old when he cut off his left ear just before Christmas in 1888" (Vincent Van Gogh : Dutch Painter), it is apparent that throughout this period in his life he was facing internal hardships. This was what this painting portrayed. This painting captures my attention because it gives us an idea of what was going on in his head. It isn't common for men to feel comfortable expressing their feelings but Van Gogh did it through art. I feel like this can show people that there are different ways to express themselves. People may see this and try different outlets of expression. Expressing oneself is important because it is how you get rid of unwanted emotions. If left alone, unwanted emotions can lead to many negative things but this art shows that it's okay to do it in different ways.

 

This painting tells a story of hopelessness and sadness. You can see in the pictures that the characters have their head in their hands or have their heads down. You can also see in the left corner that the man and women are sitting next to each other instead of across from each other which signifies that he was comforting her. Another point that gives strength to the hopelessness in the painting is the dim lights. Instead of bright lights, the painting has a sickly yellow color to it. The bartender's supposed white coat also has a sickly yellow tint to it. In the painting, the bartender is facing us with an uninviting face. You can see that he does not want company. There are also unarranged chairs, half-empty wine glasses, and open bottles of liquor on various tables. This gives us a sense of disorganization. The clock on the picture says that it is past 12. This signifies that these individuals can't sleep due to their troubles and are overstaying their visit to the café. The lights, which are exhibiting a sickly yellow, are all the same. There seems to be an eye at the center of it staring back at the audience. This pattern also contributes to the uninviting theme that this art piece portrays. The value is rather dark, the Artist uses a combination of a dim shade of yellow and green. 

Although I am intrigued by this art piece I most likely would not own a copy of it because it does not represent by personality correctly. I would describe myself as bubbly and positive, while this painting suggests sadness and hopelessness. This painting might go best in a therapist's office because it gives dark emotions a sense of normalcy. During this period in his life Vincent Van Gogh was going through internal hardships, I could not say that I relate to this but I really appreciate how it expresses emotions that aren't really talked about. 

Work Cited

1. Vincent Van Gogh : Dutch Painter. 30 Aug. 2022, www.britannica.com/art/still-life-painting.

2. Zelazko, Alicja. “The Productive Decade of Vincent Van Gogh.” britainnica.com, 2022, www.britannica.com/biography/Vincent-van-Gogh/Legacy.