It’s probably fair to say that most of us have a go-to painting that comes to mind when somebody mentions 
Van Gogh. Whether it’s desperately trying to re-create Sunflowers during art lessons at school or having a replica Starry Night hanging on the wall, most will have stumbled across at least one of the artist’s great works. Beyond Van Gogh offers visitors, however familiar they are with Van Gogh’s work, an immersive experience that “breathes new life” into his well-known paintings. Situated in an exhibition hall at Birmingham’s NEC and boasting an occupation of 30,000 square feet of space and 4 Trillion content pixels, it is billed as something special that will captivate and inspire. So how does it shape up?
A winding trail of pre-show information starts everything off. Snippets of paintings and close-up brush strokes provide a digital backdrop for some background information about how Van Gogh came to art and fame. A darkened hall and carefully positioned screens mean this busy walkthrough section in a hall designed for much larger events almost feels intimate at times.
Following the history trail, we are led into the fully immersive area where many versions of Van Gogh, along with paintings of those that were around him, stare back at us. It soon becomes apparent that this is no ordinary gallery, however, and just as the initial spectacle of the sheer scale of the digitised images is sinking in, we note a wink, or some pipe smoke, as things come to life around us.
As the room darkens the true spectacle begins, theatrical in nature and with a gentle musical score to accompany it, the various screens and pillars around, above and below us light and change through years of Van Gogh’s work. Although certainly a sight to behold, it is here that the experience slightly lets itself down. The decision to leave the ceiling open somewhat spoils the immersion at times; air conditioning ducts and ceiling tracks are clearly visible and are enough to remind you where you are and snap you back to reality. This is further exaggerated in the lighter sections where more of the surroundings, along with all the people you are sharing the experience with, become very visible and some more of the magic of immersion is lost. It is worth repeating that only some of the magic is lost, however, and the technical excellence of the installation does still have a certain wow factor even despite the niggles.
Beyond Van Gogh does just about live up to its promises of allowing us to “experience the finest details of Van Gogh’s works in unprecedented clarity, as if painted before your eyes” and it certainly provides something quite memorable. With its short experience time of just over one hour – inclusive of reading the screens of history – and a ticket price starting at £20.80 (children £9.60), however, some could leave feeling less starry-eyed and more a little short-changed.
Runs until 1 September 2024 and on tour
