WOW, WOW, WOW!

Let me tell you about something I did yesterday that knocked my socks off! I had seen ads for the Vincent van Gogh exhibit a few months back when it was in Charlotte, NC. Now that it moved to Raleigh, I asked Cyndi if she and Bill would be interested in going with me. Cyndi thought Bill might like it, but she wasn’t that interested in going to an art exhibit; however, yesterday morning the three of us drove to Raleigh and found “Van Gogh, the Immersive Experience” in a building in Pleasant Valley Mall. There was no doubt we were at the right place as the whole exterior of the building yelled “Van Gogh!” in bright, bold colors.

We entered and I got a senior ticket and Bill got a military ticket, leaving Cyndi as the only adult in the room! In the first few rooms, we saw paintings by Van Gogh and read plaques explaining his life. In one alcove there was a large picture of a vase of flowers and as we watched, the vase color and type of flowers continually changed.

There was a display of Van Gogh’s bedroom and we were allowed to enter and take pictures of ourselves in the bedroom. Of course I did!

BUT THEN, we went into a big room where there were chairs and benches, the room was dark, music played softly, we could hear Vincent’s words being spoken, and the whole room came alive! His famous pictures of sunflowers were splashed on all four walls and on the floor, constantly moving. You’ve heard of surround sound, this was surround art. The

room grew darker and the sky lit up with his painting of Starry Night. Individual works of his art would then appear along the walls, and then they MOVED. One picture being ripped away as a picture underneath appeared, then that would rip away revealing yet another. The pictures were alive as the person in the picture changed shape before our eyes. One picture was of water, then the water sloshed out of the frame and appeared to fall onto the floor. I never knew where to look next. I was mesmerized.  

When that show, which was thirty to forty minutes long, was over we exited into another room where we were invited to take a template of one of his art works and sit down and color it with the crayons provided. Bill and I both did that and THEN we got to put our pictures in a device that displayed our pictures on a wall. They stayed there until being replaced eventually with other’s pictures. But, we can say our artwork hung in an exhibit! And we got to take our pictures home.

THEN, the day got even more incredible. We paid an extra $5 each to sit on a stool, put a virtual reality headpiece on, and float through his bedroom, down the stairs, out the door, and through the streets of Arles, France for ten wonderful minutes, then end up back in his bedroom. And the whole time, we stayed seated on a stool, a stool we held onto tightly for fear of falling once we started moving (or appearing to move.)

I admired technology before, but now I have an entirely new appreciation for what can be done. Amazing! Fantastic! Incredulous!

By the end, Cyndi decided art could be really
interesting! For me, I’ve been spoiled. I’ll never want to see a typical art exhibit again. If the Van Gogh Immersive exhibit comes to your area, don’t miss it. It's been going around the country since 2017 and seen by over five million people. You’ll be glad you went.  And by the way, we learned a lot about Vincent van Gogh so it was educational as well. And, of course, there was a gift shop where we gladly shopped.

Here are more pictures from the Immersive room.

Quote of the Day: I dream of a painting, then I paint my dream. Vincent van Gogh