Van Gogh – The Immersive Experience – Review

Last Updated on October 3, 2022

Step into one of Van Gogh’s paintings at this Van Gogh Immersive Experience

I love immersive art shows and they are all the rage at the moment. So, along with the promise of breakfast it wasn’t too much of an issue to get me up early on a sunny morning to attend the press preview for Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience.

I was excited to be one of the first people to see more than 300 of Van Gogh’s greatest works through a 360-degree, floor-to-ceiling digital projection’ in a family-friendly and Covid secure environment. The exhibition is in a building called Commercial 106 on Commercial St in London’s East End. It’s an atmospheric former 19th-century stable, just around the corner from Aldgate East tube and close to the hipster hubs of Shoreditch and Brick Lane. 

There are four main rooms. The 1st room is the most traditional with elements including reproductions of some of Van Gogh’s most famous paintings.

There is a timeline of his life, some informative videos and an ingenious 3D vase overlayed with projections of flowers that morph into one another. The exhibition doesn’t shy away from dealing with difficult topics such as Van Gogh’s mental illness but is also extremely illuminating in the way it explains the implications of his colour blindness on the work and his friendship with Gaugin.

Van Gogh created over 2000 works of art in his tragically short life of 37 years, and many of the most famous were created in the countryside around Arles, a beautiful town in the south of France situated on the river Rhōne.  

There is a charming 3D recreation of the ‘Bedroom in Arles’ but to get the full Arles experience there is an opportunity to take an amazing  10 minute 360 degree VR trip through the Arles house as well as the town.

This “day in the life of the artist” is a truly magical experience – you get to float through the house and the landscape with the views that inspired paintings such as Vincent’s Bedroom at Arles, and Starry Night Over The Rhone River being presented in frames as you pass by.

The other highlight is a large immersive room with the audience sitting on deckchairs. Scenes from the paintings unfold in front of you ranging from the sublimely beautiful to a trippy sequence inspired by the paintings Van Gogh made whilst in the asylum. With a well-chosen soundtrack accompanying it’s a truly mind-blowing experience! 

The final room gives you the opportunity to create your own masterpiece. Colour in and then scan your piece for display! 

If you love Van Gogh or you want to find out more about him and his art, then this exhibit is for you. There is enough to satisfy everyone from art buffs to young children so why not book your ticket now!  It has now been extended to run through to at least the end of October 2022.

Van Gogh Expo London
The Old Stable Yard,
The Old Truman Brewery
106 Commercial Street
London, E1 6LZ

Looking for somewhere to eat in the area? We recommend Galvin La Chapelle in Spitalfields