Immersive Van Gogh experience headed for Vegas
Even 130 years after he took his own life, Vincent Van Gogh’s mind is an unsettling place.
A new exhibition moving into Las Vegas takes us inside the artist’s psyche, through a series of all-encompassing projections, music and his penetrating paintings. “Immersive Van Gogh” opens July 1, and there are no age restrictions (tickets start at $59, not including fees, and are on sale 10 a.m. Saturday at immersivevangogh.com).
Though the date and city are noted, Van Gogh’s specific Vegas setting is still hidden under the canvas. The location is in what creators term Secret Venue Status, or as we call it, “SVS.”
Co-producer Corey Ross says the public will know the formal location by June (sooner than that if we have a say in it), but it will be “in the heart of Las Vegas,” according to its creators.
“We will be re-purposing a place people know,” says Ross, who also co-produces “Extravaganza” and “Potted Potter” at Bally’s, and “Wow!” at the Rio. “We have been impressed with how people have been willing to buy into the ‘mystery venue’ concept.”
The same strategy has worked in L.A. and New York, where Van Gogh opens before Las Vegas and where venues have not been announced.
But the COVID protocols of this place are no mystery. Groups will be socially distant, of course, moving through the exhibit inside Van Gogh-inspired circles projected on the floor.
The space will encompass 500,000 cubic feet, using 60,600 frames of video and 90 million pixels. In scale and concept, the Van Gogh annex falls in line with such current Vegas entertainment amenities as The Portal, Museum Fiasco, Wink World and Meow Wolf’s Omega Mart at Area15; and the Museum Of Dream Space (MODS) at The Venetian’s Grand Canal Shoppes.
The creative companies Lighthouse Immersive and Foster Entertainment have already opened “Immersive Van Gogh” in such locations as the Toronto Star newspaper’s old printing-press room, and the historic Fillmore West rock hall in San Francisco.
The ethereal location is Van Gogh’s conscious. The hourlong experience delves into his very thought process just as his life passed before his eyes when he committed suicide in 1890 at age 37. Led by Italian film producer Massimiliano Siccardi, the exhibit covers every surface of the venue, an example being “Sunflowers” projected along steel beams.
The exhibition will feature images of more than 2,000 of Van Gogh’s catalog of masterpieces. Among them are “The Potato Eaters,” “Starry Night,” and “The Bedroom.” Ross says the original works are part of public domain, there is no overarching licensing body for Van Gogh’s work, and thus no trademark infringement concerns.
Ross says Siccardi is “the Steven Spielberg of immersive experiences.” The visionary’s previous immersive productions in Paris have been seen by more than 2 million visitors.
Italian multimedia composer Luca Longobardi has partnered with artistic director Vittorio Guidotti for a soundscape specific to the show.
“Despite being unknown throughout his life, Van Gogh’s artwork has created a lasting impact through its emotional richness and simple beauty,” Siccardi said in a statement. “Both myself and Luca Longobardi are very excited to visit Las Vegas and once again bring Van Gogh’s legacy to life in a way that is unique to the city.”
The show carries what Ross describes as a “loosey-goosey narrative,” similar to the thin plot lines in a Cirque du Soleil production. The producer adds that the Van Gogh project is a cross between an immersive theater (holding up the New York hit “Sleep No More” as the leading example), filmmaking and a traditional art exhibit.
“We see Van Gogh in a whole different level, where everything becomes encompassing,” Ross says. “His techniques are right in front of you. The speckles of paint that are so close that if you put our nose up against the painting in a gallery, you would be thrown out.”
“Immersive Van Gogh” is set to run through the end of the year. Maybe longer, as it has been viewed by more than 200,000 people already in San Francisco, Chicago and Toronto. The L.A. exhibit opens in May, New York in June, Phoenix in July. The exhibit is promoting an exhibit in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Instagram, but posting no other information. Vegas will no doubt be one of the show’s most celebrated destinations.
“If it goes great, we’ll see,”Ross says. “We’d love to be in Las Vegas for a long time.”
The Review-Journal is owned by the family of Sheldon Adelson, the late chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sands Corp. Las Vegas Sands operates The Venetian.
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.
