New Research Suggests Van Gogh's "Starry Night" Depicts a Specific Astronomical Event

New research utilizing astronomical modeling suggests that Vincent van Gogh's renowned painting, "The Starry Night," may not be purely a product of imagination, but rather a depiction of the actual night sky on a specific date. Astronomers from Kyung Hee University in Yongin, South Korea, propose that Van Gogh could have observed the celestial bodies he painted from his vantage point at the asylum in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, challenges the long-held belief that "The Starry Night" was solely a visionary creation. While the exact date of its creation has been debated, previous assumptions placed it in June 1889, based on a letter from Van Gogh to his brother Theo describing work on a "new study of a starry sky." Van Gogh experienced a severe mental health crisis around July 22 of that year, after which he was unable to paint for several weeks.

Researchers hypothesize that if the painting were created around July 22, 1889, the moon, Venus, and the Hyades star cluster depicted would align with the dawn sky visible from his asylum window. To support this, the team located a ridge southwest of the asylum that matched an earlier sketch by Van Gogh. "I was standing where Vincent had stood 130 years earlier," said Elijah Jeong-hyun Kim, the study's first author.

Using astronomy software, Kim and his colleagues recreated images of the dawn sky for each day in June and July of 1889. "To bring the question into science, which needs quantitative data, we had to measure the degree of resemblance between the star patterns in the painting and the real sky, using shape geometry and statistics," Kim explained.

The researchers focused on dawns where the moon appeared above Venus, an arrangement depicted in the painting. Among the three potential dates identified, July 22 emerged as the closest match, showing a sky with a waning crescent moon, Venus, and the Hyades star cluster consistent with the painting's depiction.

However, the study's authors acknowledge that their findings are not conclusive. They suggest that Van Gogh may have combined elements from the sky over several days to create the final artwork.

This interpretation is met with skepticism by some experts. Representatives from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, who were not involved in the study, maintain that the painting was created in June 1889. They point to evidence that Van Gogh worked on canvas delivered in early June, sent a sketch to his brother on July 2, and then suffered a significant breakdown around July 22. "Van Gogh was not concerned with exact likenesses," a museum spokesperson stated. "The positions of the celestial bodies depicted can therefore not form a reliable basis for dating the work."

Previously, scientists have noted Van Gogh's advanced understanding of scientific principles, with one 2024 study revealing that his depiction of turbulence in "The Starry Night" aligned with Kolmogorov's law of 1940, a concept in fluid dynamics not established until nearly a century later. This suggests Van Gogh's artistic style incorporated an intuitive grasp of complex scientific phenomena.

Despite the ongoing debate, the painting's enduring power continues to captivate audiences, inviting reflection on the intersection of art, science, and the artist's profound connection to the natural world. The asylum where Van Gogh painted, Saint-Paul-de-Mausole, is located in a picturesque region, further adding to the mystique of his work.