Writing a review

Exhibition Review - Tate Britain: The EY Exhibition, Van Gogh in Britain

Before visiting the Exhibition my knowledge of Van Gogh’s art was based on course research I did on his self-portraits and interior scenes. I didn’t pay much attention to the publicity as I tend to be sceptical when critics confidently describe what was in the minds of artists decades or centuries earlier. I knew that Van Gogh wrote letters to his family and friends, but I didn’t expect to see such a vast collection of the letters he wrote - a real record of what this incredible artist actually did have in his mind, and this made the exhibition especially fascinating.

I was of course blown away by the works presented, and as I read the text beside each painting I appreciated the relevance of the Exhibition title, and how Van Gogh was inspired during the three years he spent in Britain working as an art dealer. Even though he was not yet an artist it’s clear he immersed himself in British culture: his reading, long walks, visits to museums and parks, and his print and painting collection, are all evidence of the influences which inspired him to became an artist in later life, as reflected in letters written years after he left.

The first painting I saw was L’Arlesianne, a figure with two books on a table, one of which was Dickens’ Christmas Carol, and the Exhibition had a bookshelf opposite the painting with a number of other books by British authors which Van Gogh had read.

The exhibition had several rooms presenting work by Van Gogh next to the work that inspired him, such as The Newgate Prison by Gustave Doré -

Also on show was a print of Doré’s ‘Evening on the Thames’, 1872, a nocturnal view of the river which Van Gogh bought after he left Britain, the inspiration for his “Starry Night over the Rhone’, 1888 -

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The last part of the exhibition showed how British artists have in turn been inspired by Van Gogh’s work: “Shoes” 1886 (below left) and William Nicholson “Miss Jeklyn’s gardening boots” 34 years later -

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Francis Bacon was also fascinated by Van Gogh's work, his “On the road to Tarascon” (below left) was reinterpreted based on the recreation of the scene from the film ‘Lust for life’ by Vicente Minnelli

Francis Bacon 1957

the-artist-on-the-road-to-tarascon

From a curation viewpoint the Exhibition was excellent, and the lighting was superb. I ’ve seen some of these same works in the National Gallery and they didn’t have the same impact there as they did here. I was able to immerse myself in the detail of the works and see clearly the development of his style, beginning fairly traditionally, and evolving to become the highly recognisable Van Gogh style we all know. The emotional power of his dynamic short brush strokes and dots, his pointillist and impasto approach, his use of colour, and above all his ability to communicate character and emotion. A wonderful Exhibition, my favourite painting was “The Hospital at Saint-Remy”, 1889, a view from the garden of the mental hospital where he was self-admitted.

This painting is emotionally charged, the colours and the dynamism of the brush strokes in the foliage are incredible, and something I will experiment with.

Reference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSSmvRn8HvY

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-6773669/Major-new-exhibition-explores-Van-Goghs-Britain.html

https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/bacon-study-for-portrait-of-van-gogh-iv-t00226

https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/nicholson-miss-jekylls-gardening-boots-n05548

https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/vincent-van-gogh-1182/seven-things-know-about-van-goghs-time-britain