VOA新闻杂志2024--Van Gogh's The Starry Night Recreated in Bosnia's Hills

In the green hills of central Bosnia and Herzegovina, Halim Zukic has recreated a nature park in the form of one of Vincent van Gogh's most famous paintings, The Starry¹ Night.

Zukic is from the town of Visoko. He decided² to create a park after buying some land and a small house in a nearby village 20 years ago. But he had no clear idea of what the park should look like.

Then he saw tractors moving among fields of tall grass six years ago. He also saw that the tractors made circular shapes in the earth. This reminded him of similar shapes in Van Gogh's painting.

"From that moment, I was no longer in doubt," Zukic told Reuters news agency. But his effort took him time, money, and a lot of work.

To match the painting, Zukic brought in 130,000 lavender plants in six colors. Plants known for their aromas⁴ and medicinal uses were also planted. These include sage⁵, echinacea, wormwood and chamomile. Together, they form colorful circles and help recreate the appearance of Van Gogh's painting.

Zukic also planted more trees and created 13 small lakes using water from the area.

Zukic did the work to form the land into the same shape as the painting by himself. He said recreating the painting has helped him better understand artists and the creative problems they face.

"This is the largest representation⁶ of The Starry Night, and the result of 20 years of dreams, of living those dreams to make them real," he said.

The park is 10 hectares in size. Zukic said it will show art programs and promote central Bosnia's cultural heritage⁷. Zukic also wants the park to offer visitors a place to rest and think.

Van Gogh was born in 1853 in the Netherlands and died in 1890 in France.

Words in This Story

tractor -n. a vehicle with a strong motor that is used to pull things

in doubt -phrase to be in a state of indecision

aroma³ -n. a pleasing smell

promote -v. to tell people about something in an effort to make it more popular

heritage -n. the traditions, beliefs and objects that make up the history of a people

1 starry   

adj.星光照耀的, 闪亮的

参考例句：

• He looked at the starry heavens.他瞧着布满星星的天空。
• I like the starry winter sky.我喜欢这满天星斗的冬夜。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 aroma   

n.香气，芬芳，芳香

参考例句：

• The whole house was filled with the aroma of coffee.满屋子都是咖啡的香味。
• The air was heavy with the aroma of the paddy fields.稻花飘香。

4 aromas   

n.芳香( aroma的名词复数 )；气味；风味；韵味

参考例句：

• Intoxicating earth aromas induced lassitude and ethereal calm. 泥土的醉人的芳香叫人懒洋洋的，感到一种远离尘世的宁静。 来自辞典例句
• Nose and elegant nose with attractive fruity, floral and citrus fruit aromas. 芳香：优雅、馥郁、迷人的柑橘属水果的果香及花的清香。 来自互联网

5 sage   

n.圣人，哲人；adj.贤明的，明智的

参考例句：

• I was grateful for the old man's sage advice.我很感激那位老人贤明的忠告。
• The sage is the instructor of a hundred ages.这位哲人是百代之师。

6 representation   

n.表现某人（或某事物）的东西，图画，雕塑

参考例句：

• The painting is a representation of a storm at sea.这幅画描绘的是海上的暴风雨。
• All parties won representation in the national assembly.所有政党在国民大会中都赢得了代表资格。

7 heritage   

n.传统，遗产，继承物

参考例句：

• The ancient buildings are part of the national heritage.这些古建筑是民族遗产的一部分。
• We Chinese have a great cultural heritage.我们中国人有伟大的文化遗产。