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Reuters

Amid the green hills and meadows of central Bosnia, a local businessman has realised his long-held dream: recreating one of Vincent van Gogh’s most famous paintings, The Starry Night, in the form of a nature park.
Halim Zukic from the town of Visoko decided to create a park after buying some land and a cottage in a nearby village 20 years ago, but he had no clear idea of what it should look like.
Then, six years ago, as he stood on a hill watching tractors in a hay meadow, he noticed their spiral-shaped wheel tracks in the earth, which reminded him of the swirling motifs in Van Gogh’s canvas from 1889.
“From that moment, I was no longer in doubt,” Zukic said. But his vision took time, money and effort to realise.

Zukic wanted the 10-hectare (25-acre) Starry Night park to be part of a larger complex offering a retreat to visitors. He planted more trees and created 13 lakes using existing natural streams.
To match the painting, 130,000 bushes of lavender in six different shades were planted, as well as other medicinal and aromatic herbs such as sage, echinacea, wormwood and camomile, forming colourful circles, spirals and natural amphitheatres.
Zukic did all the landscaping himself. He said recreating the painting had helped him understand artists and the creative challenges they face.
“This is the largest representation of The Starry Night, and the result of 20 years of dreams, of living those dreams to make them real,” he said.

The Starry Night park will focus on art programmes and the promotion of central Bosnia’s cultural heritage, Zukic said.


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Tourism

Park based on Van Gogh’s Starry Night painting is the realisation of a 20-year dream

A drone view of the Starry Night park in Visoko, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Photo: Reuters

A drone view of the Starry Night park in Visoko, Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is based on one of Vincent van Gogh’s most famous paintings. Photo: Reuters

Halim Zukic and his daughter Emina stand amid lavender bushes and shrubs at the Starry Night park in Visoko. Photo: Reuters

The Starry Night (1889), by Vincent van Gogh. Photo: Shutterstock

Hong Kong’s nocturnal wildlife on view in a Kadoorie Farm night walk

A bicoloured stream snake, one of the species spotted on a night walk at Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden. Photo: Mabel Lui

The Asian common toad is the most widespread amphibian species in Hong Kong, and can be seen on a Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden night walk. Photo: Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden

KFBG’s night walk begins with an introduction to the nocturnal animals in its conservation area. Photo: Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden

Gary Ades, head of KFBG’s fauna conservation department, came up with the idea for the night safari – predecessor of the night walk – in the early 2000s. Photo: Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden

Yang Jianhuan, KFBG conservation manager, takes visitors on night walks to see the nocturnal wildlife in its conservation area. Photo: Jonathan Wong

A vibrant green cascade frog at Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden. Photo: Mabel Lui

Bamboo snakes are among the reptiles which can be spotted on KFBG’s night walks. Photo: Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden

Manis the leopard cat lives in an enclosure at the Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden because it was born in a zoo. Nine wild leopard cats have been counted in the KFBG conservation area. Photo: Jonathan Wong

A Hong Kong newt, one of the amphibians that can be seen during KFBG’s night walk. Photo: Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden

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Dusty workshops and hardware stores exist alongside trendy new cafes and lifestyle shops on Chifeng Street in Taipei’s Zhongshan district. Photo: Mavis Teo

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Many new restaurants have opened on Chifeng Street. Photo: Mavis Teo

Kevin Rose is the head chef of Ad Astra. He was drawn to Taiwan by the quality of its produce. Photo: Ad Astra

Sea urchin waffle at Ad Astra. Photo: Ad Astra

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Galerie, a cafe on Chifeng Street, is very popular for its retro look. Photo: Mavis Teo

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Barcelona to ban Airbnb-style short-term apartment rentals. Will other cities follow?

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Demonstrators cordon off a bar during an anti-tourism protest on Barcelona’s Las Ramblas. Many of the city’s residents are fed up with overtourism and its effect on housing in their city. Photo: AFP

Demonstrators hold up a sign decrying Airbnb during a protest against mass tourism in Barcelona. Photo: AFP

Lifestyle

Travel & Leisure

Arts & Culture

To match the painting, 130,000 bushes of lavender in six different shades were planted, as well as other medicinal and aromatic herbs


A businessman in Bosnia has recreated one of Vincent van Gogh’s most famous paintings, The Starry Night, in the form of a nature park, which includes 130,000 lavender bushes in six different shades.


Bosnia and Herzegovina

Travel Destinations