From romantic moonlit waves, to frightening monsters that lurk in shadows, to lascivious after hours activities on city streets, night scenes has been have been a popular subject for artists throughout history for a wide range of reasons. Mid-nineteenth-century artists, such as Albert Bierstadt painted nightscapes of the American West to evoke the spiritual symbolism of light and darkness in nature. In his most iconic work, Post-impressionist Vincent Van Gogh harnessed the expressive qualities of a starry night through swirls of hallucinatory colors. Once long exposure technology was invented for the camera, photographers such as Brassaï in Paris and Alfred …
From romantic moonlit waves, to frightening monsters that lurk in shadows, to lascivious after hours activities on city streets, night scenes has been have been a popular subject for artists throughout history for a wide range of reasons. Mid-nineteenth-century artists, such as Albert Bierstadt painted nightscapes of the American West to evoke the spiritual symbolism of light and darkness in nature. In his most iconic work, Post-impressionist Vincent Van Gogh harnessed the expressive qualities of a starry night through swirls of hallucinatory colors. Once long exposure technology was invented for the camera, photographers such as Brassaï in Paris and Alfred Stieglitz in New York were able to capture the pulse of city nightlife as it became lit by electric street lamps. Whether well lit or shrouded in darkness, nocturnes continue to fascinate contemporary artists such as Remi Thornton who photographs dramatically lit public structures deserted at night and Yvonne Jacquette who paints detailed nightscapes of cities viewed from airplanes and skyscrapers.
