In 2001, I read the catalogue for a show titled "Light: The Industrial Age 1750-1900, Art and Science, Technology and Society." Although I never did see the show, its only venue in the US was the Carnegie Museum of Art, the catalogue made a tremendous impression on me. Before this, I had never given serious thought to how much electricity has altered our ability to read, work, make art, etc. The 2001 exhibition was organized with the Van Gogh Museum and was, in part, motivated by a desire to demonstrate that even the greatest artists struggled with the variables of natural and artificial light. One incentive to mount the show was that Van Gogh mentioned in his letters that his paintings looked different in daylight and gaslight.
This 2001 exhibition comes to mind now in light [sic] of the small Van Gogh exhibition now up at the MOMA in NYC, and also organized in collaboration with the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam. [The MOMA organizers include Joachim Pissarro, Adjunct Curator, Department of Painting and Sculpture, The Museum of Modern Art; Sjraar van Heugten, Head of Collections, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam; and Jennifer Field, Curatorial Assistant, Department of Painting and Sculpture, The Museum of Modern Art.] According to the MOMA page: "This exhibition will present new insight into Van Gogh's depictions of night landscapes, interior scenes, and the effects of both gaslight and natural light on their surroundings. Representing all periods of the artist's career, the exhibition will comprise over two dozen works of superlative quality—several of which have never been seen together, even though they were very clearly conceived with each other in mind. This exhibition will be shown at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, February 13–June 7, 2009. It will be accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue"
There is also a fabulous slide show, complete with audio information that offers fascinating details about several of the works, many of which are new to me. Several of the works, I should add, are well known. For example, The Night Cafe (1888) and The Starry Night (1889).
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