In The Starry Night, Vincent Van Gogh’s representation of the night sky has captivated the attention of art enthusiasts and scientists alike. Through the lenses of fluid dynamics and turbulence, researchers have studied the painting to see if Van Gogh captured real-world physics in his brushstrokes.
Scientists from China and France – who specialized in marine sciences and fluid dynamics – examined the painting’s portrayal of movement in the sky in detail, comparing its fluid dynamics to mathematical models of turbulent flow. The term “turbulence” describes the chaotic fluid motion frequently present in gases and liquids, such as water currents or the atmosphere.
The complex formations of turbulence in nature appear to be mirrored in Van Gogh’s swirling skies. Similar to how researchers would analyze real-world turbulence data, they analyzed the patterns of scaling and energy dissipation by employing the relative brightness of the paint’s hues as a stand-in for the kinetic energy of fluid motion.
To analyze Van Gogh’s paintings, it was necessary to dissect the features of his skies—such as eddies and vortices—that are commonly researched in fluid dynamics. They discovered a striking similarity between The Starry Night’s turbulence and patterns observed in real turbulent systems.
Through the use of mathematics, such as the Kolmogorov scaling law, the scientists were able to show how Van Gogh’s brushstrokes captured the complex physics of turbulent fluid movements. Kolmogorov’s Law is a tool used to measure how the atmosphere reacts to initial energy input from the wind or convection.
“The scale of the paint strokes played a crucial role,” author Yongxiang Huang said. “With a high-resolution digital picture, we were able to measure precisely the typical size of the brushstrokes and compare these to the scales expected from turbulence theories.”
Van Gogh’s ability to depict turbulent energy through artistic means has prompted speculation about his potential sensitivity to visualizing complex natural phenomena, even without formal training in science.
It is suggested that his mental state, including episodes of psychosis, may have influenced his unique perception of reality. The vivid, swirling skies of The Starry Night—painted while he was institutionalized—may represent his attempt to convey emotional chaos, though it strikingly resembles real-world atmospheric physics.
Although other artists have captured motion and energy in comparable ways, such as Turner’s stormy seascapes or Monet’s water reflections, Van Gogh’s depiction of turbulence is notable for its meticulous adherence to the laws of physics. While other artists may capture motion and light, Van Gogh’s skies show similar scaling laws and fine-grained mathematical patterns to those found in natural turbulence models.
Van Gogh’s uniqueness might arise from a combination of his emotional state, visual perception and technique. His thick, impasto style, with its pronounced brushstrokes and contrasting colors, creates a dynamic texture that naturally evokes a sense of motion. But the scientific analysis goes beyond mere artistic representation, finding that the energy distribution within his work mirrors what occurs in real turbulent systems.