Sea waves in the sky
Brilliant blossoms light the eye
Endless night is nigh
Van Gogh’s Starry Night is one of the most well-known artistic works. While most know of the painting and have seen it at some point in their lives, they have not taken time to see what the painting has to offer. I choose to write a haiku about the painting because it encompasses a complex image in very few words/syllables. Having the name Starry Night the critical thing you might look at is the intricate sky’s design, but artists rarely include something for looks. Meaning is in everything. You can see the light on in the windows, but the bright moon and stars also illuminate the town. It might be nighttime, but it is still shining. The imagery that I use in my poem allows you to see the sky without the image. The sky does look like waves, and the bright stars look like bloomed flowers. The most important part is the last phrase. The night is commonly associated with darkness which is eerie and foreboding. There is a sense of serenity and hope that comes from both the painting and the poem. The poem is a shortened version the brings the imagery to you. With so little to work with, there is only so much you can take from this work. The translation isn’t anywhere near perfect, but the original is hard to beat. The feeling that you get from the painting is portrayed by the poem because of its bright imagery of hopefulness given.
