Vincent Willem van Gogh, March 30, 1853-29. June 1890 (age 37)
The 5 most famous paintings in the world are not just about paintings, but to a large extent also about the arts behind the famous brushstrokes. I have chosen to try to find 5 large recycling jars and make my interpretation of each painting from all the interpretations found on the same painting. My interpretation is thus a mirror of all those interpretations, but on an old recycling jar.
All portraits on this jar are self-portraits of Vincent Van Gogh.
Vincent Willem van Gogh was a Dutch painter. He is one of the most significant artists in European art history. Van Gogh managed to paint approx. 900 paintings and approx. 1100 drawings in a period of 8 years before he died. He suffered from manic-depressive psychosis and was throughout his life in and out of mental hospitals.
“Starry Night” is an oil painting by Vincent Van Gogh and dated June 1889, and is one of the world’s 5 most famous paintings. The painting appears with its strong blue tones and sharp brushstrokes in the night sky.
The painting depicts the view that Vincent van Gogh had from his room in the mental hospital “Saint-Paul-de-Mausole”.
“Starry Night” can be found at the renowned MoMa (Museum of Modern Art) in New York. In 1998, the painting was sold as being the most expensive painting in Van Gogh’s unique production of masterpieces.
Self-portrait of Vincent Van Gogh
This jar is a flea find and has some damage. I chose this particular jar for “Starry Night” because of the 4 handles that remind me of the 4 corners of the world and the grooves that amplify the painting’s swirling winds.
I have carefully sanded the damage out with sandpaper and repaired a few of them with sand putty. But one of the injuries to the foot I deliberately left out because I like that the jar has its own history and DNA. Then I sprayed the top midnight blue and the bottom gold.
I searched for all the interpretations I could find on “Starry Night” and printed them out on plain printer paper. Then I cut out all the prints and decoupaged them on the jar with decoupage glue and a brush. The prints are glued on completely random and where I thought it looked nice. That decoupage is a fun puzzle. When all the prints were glued in place, the jar stood and dried for 24 hours and then it was brushed with 3 coats of wood varnish, one coat at a time.
No Comments