Vincent Van Gogh

Complesso del Vittoriano, Rome
October 8 2010 - February 6 2011
http://www.vangoghgallery.it/mostra-van-gogh-vittoriano.htm

By Nicole Minatel

The current “Vincent Van Gogh” exhibition for the Campagna Senza Tempo – Citta Moderna being held at the Complesso del Vittoriano in Rome is a mega-production in its own right. Containing over 110 artworks not only by the featured artist but also other European giants such as Millet, Pissarro and Seurat, the show is openly devised to attract as many viewers (and cash) as possible.
Assembled in the historically majestic Complesso del Vittoriano, the collection has an entire substructure designed for the four month period of its duration, which goes from October 8th 2010 to February 6th 2011. Composed of a modern two-floor exhibition space within the walls of the neoclassical monument, the added structure is built in wood and painted in various tones of yellow. The walls of the five rooms in which Van Gogh’s letters, favorite books, prints and paintings are displayed also present the viewer with personal quotes by the Dutch master and concise yet informative wall labels in both Italian and English.
These wall labels introduce the viewer to a somewhat romantic version of the events that took place in Van Gogh’s convoluted life, leading from his modest beginnings in the Netherlands to fame and glory in France. The later, more disturbing phase and works that came with his illness and were made from within the institution of a sanatorium are left out. Instead, the curatorial decision is to focus on Van Gogh’s dichotomous relationships with the stable, never changing countryside and the always moving, modern city setting. This thematic inclination is appropriate if one takes into consideration that Vincent Van Gogh lived between the years of 1853-1890, a time of intense social and technological change within Europe. Van Gogh’s representation as a tortured individual, whose only connection to the ‘real’ world comes from his correspondence with his brother Theo (to whom he wrote many letters, some on display at the exhibition) is only touched upon in the initial introduction of the artist, and instead the focus of the four rooms with paintings shifts to showing changes in his representation of nature and cities or towns, which starts off as darkly realistic and later evolves into the vivid impressionism we are all so familiar with.
Although it covers a copious range of moments within the artists’ oeuvre, this show is not to be considered a complete amalgamation of the very fruitful ten years in which Van Gogh painted. Instead, it is a didactic, simplified and somewhat sensationalist presentation that starts off with an interesting approach to his more obscure early phase, of which one sees sketches, prints, paintings and books from smaller museums and private collectors. Unfortunately, the exhibition soon falls into the (not erroneous) assumption that spectators are only interested in seeing portraits and cypresses, and the two main rooms are therefore dedicated to a more recognizable style of thick layers, loose brushstrokes and landscape scenes that made Van Gogh the household name he is today.
Keeping in mind that art and money are interconnected at all times, it is not difficult to see why any curator organizing an exhibition of this caliber would not try to include as many recognizable as possible, presenting a simpler view of the artists aspirations in lieu of searching for deeper themes. Thus, the exhibition’s ‘flaw’ is also its greatest triumph, as the works Van Gogh produced in Arles, Saint-Rémy and Auvers-sur-Oise from 1888 to 1890 are indeed beautiful and unique renditions that made Van Gogh a prototypical genius-artist worshipped to this day. Furthermore, the comparison pieces by Millet and Seurat allow a quick glimpse at the production of other fantastic early 20th century artists, whose styles served as both inspiration and partition point for Van Gogh.
But the question remains: is this show worth its 12 Euro entrance fee? The answer is yes. Not only because of the hidden gems of Van Gogh’s earlier career, his soulful portraits and self-portraits, and the thickly painted landscapes that audiences love to come dangerously near to. But also for the unique chance to see so many rare Van Gogh works in one show, to read his letters and book markings, to see newspaper articles about him from his own time and attempt to understand not only his relationship to nature and civilization (as proposed by the catalogue) but also his relationship with art-making and an ability to constantly change in search of his own stylistic bliss.