Chasing Van Gogh {Seeing Starry Night}

I hope to share a bit of what daily life is like here for us in NYC... this city is filled to the brim with every good thing and I hope to capture as much as I can and share what I find with you.

Last Friday our little family went to the MOMA (it's free every Friday from 4-8pm). I can't wait to go back on my own to shoot there. Stay tuned :)

I've been chasing Van Gogh's Starry Night for over 7 years and I finally saw it on Friday. It has been on loan off and on for a number of years, and I feel like I've been chasing this painting forever. I just missed it at the MOMA in 2003, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam in 2005, it was in Berlin the whole time we were in the UK at grad school, and then it's been hopping all over Europe and various museums in the USA whenever I've been in NYC or London... basically wherever I am, it's not. I didn't even realize it was at the MOMA and hardly believed my eyes when I saw it, did a double take, and nearly tripped while I chased my daughter through one of the galleries.

It was the most wonderful surprise. Seeing art I've studied is like seeing an old friend. This old friend brought me to tears. There's nothing better than seeing a Van Gogh in person, and Starry Night certainly did not disappoint.

Art museums are fun with kids, by the way. It's so much fun to play "I Spy..." and have them point out shapes and colors. When she was little we'd ask "what do you see?", but now that Ella is talking I love to ask "what do you like about this picture?" and hear her response.