Eyes directed straight at the viewer, the yellow suited man evokes a lonely, yet self-confident aesthetic. He has always struck me as an artist. Among yet distinguished from the motley crowd attracted to the late night cafe, the man is self-aware yet deep in thought. Unphased by the late hour and the already finished bottle of wine to his left, his mental state fundamentally differs from those of the other figures in the room. His hypersensitive visual perspective is heightened by the deep reds, off yellows, and bright greens. He perceives the room differently than the rest and boldly stands apart. To his right sit two lovers warmly entwined and an old man burying his face in his jacket. Aware of these figures, the artist holds his ground and focuses instead on an unseen person completely removed from the scene–the subtle observer waiting for the essence of life to reveal itself.

When I first saw Van Gogh’s “The Night Cafe on Place Lamartine in Arles,” at the Yale Art Gallery, I was intrigued by its vivid colors. Now, I am fascinated by the yellow suited man. He is the only person in the painting aware that the scene is being visually recorded. I suspect that Van Gogh painted himself in the scene to share how he feels at that late night cafe. Isolated in his aesthetic, observant of other people, and aware of life’s transience, he is proud of his work and will forever look his fans and critics in the eye.