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Noted painting pioneer and one-eared madman Vincent van Gogh. From the Sunflowers series. A new way of applying paint and communicating emotion to viewers cobbled together from a few different influences.

"Art demands dogged work. Work in spite of everything and continuous observation"

Vincent van Gogh believed that nature holds beauty out to us in abundance.

Vincent had well-documented challenges with depression, schizophrenia, and epilepsy punctuated by an incident where he mutilated his own ear. He could be very aggressive and argumentative and destroyed many of his relationships in life including with contemporary Paul Gauguin. He took his own life, succumbing to a pistol shot.

Vincent, dead at the tragic age of 37. He never suffered through social media, shared a video chat, or checked restaurant listings online and yet he was well ahead of his time. Perhaps Vincent's greatest achievement was producing a body of work that would continue to catch the imagination of museum goers and artists for a century. Vincent's use of bright color and bold brush strokes, in sharp contrast to the prevailing art trends during his lifetime, have continued to strike an emotional chord. During a concentrated period of ten years, Vincent created most of his whopping 2,100 works including some of the most well-known paintings in history. His art was dedicated to the proposition that one could find beauty in observing and painting nature, revealing it honestly even in exaggeration.

Everyone should have the opportunity to see his work at a gallery as was intended. Recently, there has been a movement to re-think what a gallery should be and how an audience interacts with artworks. New exhibits tinker with the boundaries between artist, work, and audience and a movement toward interactive exhibits, utilizing multi-media techniques, has taken hold. This provides a new way to absorb artwork.

Still life, portraits, and nature painting consumed van Gogh. He strove to see and paint the beauty that was everywhere around him. His more expressive works utilized bold color, quick brushstrokes, and observed compositions rather than relying on imagination.

Not everyone will have the opportunity to go to either Amsterdam or Paris where a majority of van Gogh original paintings are housed. His works can be seen at important museums around the world in a variety of collections and traveling exhibitions. It is to be noted that van Gogh worked on canvases that were "portable" in scale as he commonly set himself up to paint in nature and carted with him all his materials. A keen look at his artistic development will reveal he was influenced by many sources including Japanese block prints, known for bold use of color to evoke symbolism and emotion.

A recent visit to the Vincent van Gogh Experience in Schenectady, NY was billed as an immersive experience and the exhibit featured sculpture, music, light shows, voice-over narration, a virtual reality "tour" and dozens of reproductions of Vincent's work projected onto 3-dimensional objects such as a bust or a giant vase. The overall effect was stunning, particularly the giant 360-degree room where his paintings were projected on every surface. Combined with detailed information about Vincent's short life, the exhibit-goer was indeed treated to a comprehensive dive into the art and the artist. You come away feeling engaged with Vincent's philosophy about painting and life.

A good experience at a museum will leave you feeling inspired and this was no exception

Inevitably, you start to ask questions. What if he had gotten the treatment he needed? So little was known at that time about epilepsy or mental illness and we take for granted medications and treatments that are available today. Could he have painted for another thirty, forty or more years? What might his work evolved into? Many artists explode with energy in their youth but find their artistic footing much later in life after spending time observing and creating. He was just 37 went he died. Could he ever find calm or happiness? Would being more "stable" have destroyed his ability to channel nature onto his canvases?

There was a controversy tucked away in the exhibit that I had not known before. Was van Gogh color blind? It boggles the mind to think that someone who used such powerful color combinations could have a deficiency so cruel. Art historians do not fully agree and the website for the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam which houses many of his original works suggests that he followed a more deliberate path with using contrasting color to add additional vibrancy to his works. See link:

Looking for Contrast - Van Gogh Museum

While there are many positives about the virtual, immersive van Gogh experience, you might be left with additional questions. Many of the reproductions of Vincent's work in the exhibit were printed out onto fake canvases and to be honest, not well. Especially having seen many of the originals close up in Amsterdam, the reproductions felt dark, flat, and cheap - like decidedly poor imitations. For someone not familiar with his works, this might be a limited introduction to his use of color. Color is primarily what van Gogh is known for and yet not as evidenced by the reproductions. Additionally, while it was a tremendously visceral to have paintings and color swatches projected onto walls and objects, this kind of multi-media display also waters down and drowns out the color of his works. I am not sure that projecting images fifty feet high has anywhere near the impact of the original canvases.

Apples and oranges. The immersive experience is recommended because it creates a strong feeling about the man's life and philosophy. To get the real experience of van Gogh paintings, visit a museum that has originals on display and get as close as security will allow you so you can get a good look at the intimacy and warmth van Gogh's work communicates.

Despite his emotional struggles, Vincent believed that the world around us is a beautiful place just waiting to be discovered. Explore van Gogh and other artists for yourself. Make museum-going a part of your own journey in life. Be inspired by nature. Be inspired by creative works of every kind.

RICK

Billion Hero Studios

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