“Van Gogh Alive” at Discovery Place – Knight Foundation
Arts

“Van Gogh Alive” at Discovery Place

There’s only one weekend left to experience the immersive “Van Gogh Alive” exhibition at Discovery Place. More than 3,000 of Vincent van Gogh’s artworks are on display in an unusual exhibition method that re-creates the paintings on digital screens in a synthesis of traditional art and modern technology. Visitors will walk through galleries with famous works like “The Starry Night,” “Sunflowers” and “The Café Terrace on the Place du Forum” projected on large format screens covering the walls, ceiling and floor.

The exhibition explores Van Gogh’s artwork form his early life in the Netherlands to his pinnacle masterpieces in Arles and Saint-Rémy-de-Provence. It looks at Van Gogh’s life and inspirations through his letters and examinations of the creative origins for many of his paintings. Visitors may even encounter Van Gogh himself through dramatic interpretation, providing an interactive component to the exhibition where visitors can ask questions.

“Van Gogh Alive” is also multi-sensory as the projections are synchronized to a classical score featuring works by George Handel, Camille Saint-Saens and Franz Schubert. This immersive exhibition is created through the use of SENSORY4 technology, which uses high-definition projectors, multi-channel motion graphics and surround sound. An Artist’s Studio space also allows visitors to experiment with the intersection of art and science using robotic frequencies to translate the colors of a van Gogh print into sound waves.

“Van Gogh Alive” gallery view at Discovery Place.

According to Discovery Place President and CEO Catherine Wilson Horne, the exhibition “redefines a traditional museum experience, displaying Van Gogh’s masterpieces in larger-than-life proportions. Guests may have had previous opportunities to see a few authentic paintings in a gallery, but ‘Van Gogh Alive’ brings thousands of Van Gogh’s images under one roof in a stunning audio-visual format.”

“Van Gogh Alive” closes on June 1. Admission to the exhibition is $20 for adults and $18 for children and seniors. All tickets include full-day admission to Discovery Place. Discovery Place Members can purchase tickets for $5, and visitors or members of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art and Mint Museum will receive a $2 discount on tickets.