Scientists say theyve figured out the exact date when Van Gogh painted The Starry Night

Date:
Fri, 23 Oct 2026 11:57:13 +0000

Description:
Scientists have used AI and CAD tools to discover when Van Gogh painted The Starry Night.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Scientists say theyve dated Van Goghs The Starry Night Study says the painting was made on July 22, 1889 The researchers used AI and CAD tools to help find an answer The Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh is one of the most famous paintings in the world, and its generally held that the artist finished the work in June 1889, shortly before a serious mental breakdown. But a new scientific study has attempted to see
if technology can find the exact date that the masterpiece was made and its come to a quite different conclusion to past experts.

Research published in the journal Scientific Reports argues that not only was the painting based on a real night sky rather than pulled from Van Goghs imagination, but that July 22, 1889 is the most likely candidate for the date of the composition. That flies in the face of the conventional wisdom, and
not everyone is happy with that verdict. The studys authors reached that conclusion by first identifying the likely location where Van Gogh stood to paint the scene, concluding that he used a narrow field of view when
selecting which stars to depict. Using CAD tools and historical astronomical data, they then compared the star positions in the painting to those on every night at that place in June and July 1889, with the dates of June 23, July 22 and July 23 being the strongest matches. Of those, July 22 stood out, with
the moon, Venus and the Hyades star cluster all lining up closely with the artwork. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here:

This was backed up with contemporaneous documentary records, such as letters Van Gogh sent to his friends and relatives that described conditions at the time. AI also played a role, with the report noting that the authors used the technology for language editing, independent cross-checking of the numerical results, and assistance in preparing the deposited analysis code".

In the end, the study authors concluded that the best evidence pointed
towards July 22. This shifts the burden of proof, they argued, with those contending that the artwork came from Van Goghs imagination now needing to explain why it matches an actual night sky from the time he was known to be active. You may like Nikon fights backlash to microscope video contest winner after AI claims I saw Reddit arguing that Googles AI image generator had got worse Google pulls Nano Banana from Google Earth after one day Doubts emerge
A Lego take on Van Gogh's classic Sunflowers painting, constructed from 2,615 pieces . (Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol) Not everyone agreed with the conclusions drawn by the study. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam was quoted
in The Guardian as reaffirming that the painting was made in June 1889 and that Van Gogh was not concerned with exact likenesses. The positions of the celestial bodies depicted can therefore not form a reliable basis for dating the work.

The Guardian also cited Donald Olson, professor emeritus of physics and astronomy at Texas State University, who said that The authors assumed narrow field of view, essential for their theory that the stars of the Hyades fill most of the canvas, is inconsistent with the much wider field of view
required to encompass Starry Nights round hills and cliffs. Get daily
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I also cant help feeling that, whether its on the money or not, this scientific study misses the point of paintings like Van Goghs Starry Night. The entire purpose of art is to make you feel something on an emotional
level, and often the scientific accuracy is far less important than the emotive impact. Trying to pin down the exact date the painting was made risks missing the forest for the trees and ignoring the message that the artist was trying to convey.

Still, if you are interested in knowing exactly when Van Gogh might have set his paint on the canvas to make The Starry Night, the study is a fun attempt at drawing a conclusion that isnt just based on educated guesswork. Hopefully you can still enjoy the painting on its own merits, whether or not you agree with the researchers conclusions. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. The best laptops for all budgets Our top picks, based on real-world testing and comparisons

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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/computing/scientists-think-theyve-calculated-the-exa ct-night-when-van-gogh-painted-the-starry-night-but-not-everyone-agrees-with-t he-july-22-1889-date


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