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Assignment 1 I have to say that the Night Cafe by Vincent van Gogh on page 17 is my favorite work so far. The contrast of warm and cool colors are amazing. They present the perfect equilibrium for this painting. They kind of put me in the mood to listen to some blues or jazz while gazing upon the painting. I can imagine a stage, at the bottom right of the painting, with a saxophonist playing. As I observe, I can’t help but notice the lone man next to the couple asleep and the two buddies on the far right side drunk. One might ask ” How do you know they are drunk? Well, no one would fall asleep in a night cafe with a friend. The more believable scenario is that they were drinking and passed out. The artist’s play with colors along with his character seem to give this work it’s name. The way the lights seem animated and vibrating makes the cafe come alive for me. They create a warm feeling and yet the green ceiling cools everything down. Van Gogh’s Night Cafe looks like a place to just “chill”. After careful inspection it seems to have been created by someone from the outside looking in.
Did you notice that the gentleman in the white is posing just for the viewer as if to say “Cheese! ” There is great texture in this painting. The use of red, yellow and brown really made the floorboards look real. He uses all types of lines but mostly soft brush strokes to make everything recognizable yet just beyond absolute. It works for this art. It leaves things up to the viewer’s imagination; what kind of drinks are in the wine glasses, what nationality the people are, what they are really doing, etc.