Surround Yourself in Light and Art

The last few days have been dark ones. Even in the yellow fall sunshine, I’m finding it difficult, like many of you, to find joy in the midst of violence and death happening in Israel and the Gaza Strip. But there can be, there must be, moments of joy. I had one of those unexpected moments when I went to a press preview event for Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience.

In some ways, I found a metaphor for my feelings right now – Van Gogh’s life was so difficult. He struggled with mental health issues, epilepsy and despair. While his paintings were extraordinary, his professional life was not. Yet, his paintings have so much life, so much movement, so much richness, so much, well, yellow, as if he were taking the light and color missing in his life and finding it in his art. Standing in the swirling center of yellow sunflowers and blue starry nights was not only visually incredible, but incredibly healing. It’s a reminder of what art can do.

If your kids are into art, take them to the Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience, where they can literally BE in the art. The show opens on Saturday, Oct. 14 at 3364 E. 51^st Street (the old Fox Theater location).  The former theater space has been divided into three segments: 1. a gallery-style exhibit; 2. an immersive experience; and 3. a virtual reality experience of the battle against the darkness.

The Gallery-Style Exhibit

Upon entering, you’re greeted with 3-D sunflowers that set the mood for what’s to come. Moving into the opening gallery, visitors will see many of Vincent Van Gogh’s masterworks, recreated to the size of the originals. It’s interesting to see all 11 sunflower paintings together, ranging from the vibrant yellows to duller rusts and oranges as the flowers fade.

Van Gogh also painted many self-portraits, which are displayed not only as recreations of the original paintings, but also throughout the exhibits in various ways. The repetitive images of Van Gogh’s face in 2-D, 3-D, still and moving, large and small, make the exhibit seem personal and intimate, as do the actual words that Van Gogh wrote in numerous letters to his brother. You can read his words and listen to them within the musical score playing in the exhibit rooms. Vincent and his brother Theo were best friends, and Vincent described much of his thoughts on life and his artistic vision to Theo. I enjoyed learning more about Van Gogh from the letters, and I appreciated that actual quotes were used.

The Immersive Exhibit

The immersive room is a massive moving painting that begins with sunflower petals on the floor. They swirl about your feet and then travel up the walls where they morph into various paintings. Birds fly, trees wave and streams flow down the walls and under your feet. I jumped sideways when a fish swam by my foot. It was a pleasure to sit and get lost in the paintings as they move around you.

John Zaller, executive producer of Exhibition Hub, said that the brushstroke movement in Van Gogh’s paintings lend themselves well to the digital projection and virtual reality movement that the technology creates.

Teachers giving fieldtrips can access materials (pre-, during, and post-experience) with activities that meet the Oklahoma academic standards. There is also special pricing for groups. I would recommend at the very least that educators or parents prepare kids before you take them, and also listen to them afterwards as they describe what they saw and learned.

The VR Experience

The third and final portion of the Van Gogh Experience is a virtual reality visit. Put on the headset and you are transported on a walk through some of Van Gogh’s most famous works as a narrator uses the artist’s words to talk about the café or the lovers, or the bedroom or the yellow wheat and black crows…there are many doors to walk through as they open to an even more beautiful world. Walk across a wooden bridge as you listen to Van Gogh talk about nature and his artistic relationship to it.

At the end, anyone can choose a coloring sheet, sit down with crayons and express themselves after being inspired by the art experience. Give yourself time and permission to do this. You can scan the sheet, and it will come up as a framed work on the wall where it becomes a part of the exhibit. How great is that?

“The idea of the experience is from the time you enter to the time you leave to find surprise and delight in every corner,” Zaller said.

For information, tickets and pricing, go to vangoghexpo.com/tulsa