Country Road in Provence by Night

This captivating piece is the final masterpiece Van Gogh created during his stay at the Saint Rémy de Provence asylum, to which he admitted himself following notorious struggles with mental health issues – yes, the same ones that led to the ear-cutting incident. It was within these walls that he conjured up some of his most famous and awe-inspiring works.

Van Gogh had a thing for cypresses, frequently featuring them in his work. He wrote to his brother about how he felt no one had truly captured their essence as he perceived it, comparing them to an Egyptian obelisk.

Some art historians suggest that this painting reflects Van Gogh's sense of his own nearing end. The star and the crescent moon, juxtaposed in the sky and divided by the central cypress, symbolize the old giving way to the new. Tragically, only a few months later in 1890, Van Gogh's life came to a premature end, believed to be by his own hand.

And for the astronomy geeks: the stars to the left of the Cypress are thought to be Venus (the larger one) and Mercury (the smaller companion). A short while before Van Gogh painted this scene, these planets were a mere 3 degrees apart in the sky, shining brightly and distinctly, likely inspiring Van Gogh to capture their beauty in his painting.