On the 29th August 2024, I attended the Van Gogh immersive experience in London alongside my mum. 

We were welcomed when stepping through the entrance, but felt slightly sceptical when looking at our surroundings. The hallways on the way to the first room appeared rather scrappy and inadequate, which could be improved.

However, as I stepped into the first room full of Van Gogh’s work, I was able to learn more about his life, struggles, and key events in detail due to the several informative posters. 

There were also representations of his artwork, including Starry Night (1889) and Tree Roots (no exact date), which was his last known painting.

Me and my mum parted ways as we independently explored specific pieces of his, but joined to watch a short documentary set up. As well as talking about Van Gogh’s life, it proceeded to analyse Starry Night, which I found particularly interesting. 

Although this was one of his most famous paintings, that was the first time I actually immersed myself into it.

The documentary explained how Van Gogh’s incredible mark-marking allowed smooth movement, bringing the viewer’s eyes along the scenery and adding a connection to the process, as well as texture within it.

It also mentioned the importance of his choice of colour since the vibrant blues were possible symbolised how he felt throughout his mental illness, but also giving a calm mood. This intrigued me as it somewhat gave me an insight of his experience in the asylum.  

His tendency to study certain subjects, such as his series of Sunflowers, to consistently practice painting them throughout his career inspired me to do the same with orchids and lilies. 

The next room was interesting as it included 3D depictions of ‘Bedroom at Arles’ (1888) and ‘The Vestibule’ (1889), which were accurate representations of what his bedroom and the entrance hall of his asylum would of looked like.

Even though Van Gogh didn’t use gouache paint, his work with watercolour has influenced me to use his techniques in the future. These include using thick impasto brush strokes and his expressive use of colour.

There was also an opportunity to make my own rendition of some of Van Gogh’s famous pieces using coloured crayons. I wanted to try recreating his brush strokes with the crayons and exploring the impact of colour with the placements.

In my opinion, my favourite part of the immersive experience was the last room, which was the projection-filled room. We spent at least another hour there to see the whole thing once, but would’ve watched it again if we had more time. I watched the captivating animations in awe during the whole time, which showed how the experience put a big impact on me.

Overall, I do recommend visiting the London Van Gogh immersive experience, especially for the projection room, because I think it was well presented. Additionally, I would say that this experience benefitted me in terms of learning and improving my painting skills.