Elisabeth Condon’s Nocturne vs. Vincent van Gogh’s The...

Similarity in theme and color first drew me to select Elisabeth Condon’s Nocturne (Bob Rauschenberg Gallery) and Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night (Frank 348) for this research paper. Initially I wanted to pick two pieces that were different enough in order to form a decent comparison and yet alike enough to connect them in some way. In the art gallery, Nocturne gave me a feeling similar to the one I experienced when I first saw The Starry Night; there was something otherworldly and mystical about it. It made you look at a greater expanse then the bit of landscape that was shown in an unexpected way. Though each work was made in over a hundred year gap from the other, both works use a brilliant use of color and a view of the sky†¦show more content†¦The artist of Nocturne, Elisabeth Condon, was heavily influenced by the places she has visited. Her own craft of improvisational paint pouring combined with the influence of Eastern art, specifically Chinese scrolls, helps to create the unique presence that each painting holds. â€Å"Her paintings, collages and drawings use improvisational pours of paint, sketchbook drawings and digital projections to establish idiosyncratic compositions. Heeding the Tang Dynasty dictum of landscape as a fusion of observation and memory, they interweave external and internal perceptions of particular locations† (ABOUT: Biography). The Starry Night is an oil painting that depicts a small, nestled town under an almost magical sky. This piece, much like Elisabeth’s Nocturne, possesses a dominance of cool hues. While both paintings depict a night sky, Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night actually leads the observer’s eyes through the painting due to it’s brush strokes and fluidity. Although the work is very fluid and almost kinetic, it is not overwhelming or busy. Its rhythm is purposeful, not noisy. In fact, the painting almost gives off a calming, spiritual feeling to the viewer. The sky over the nestled town is a swirl of blue, yellow, and orange tints and shades that demonstrates an almost ethereal influence as if something greater is meant to be shown than what is simply before the observer. Radial