It's something of a rare luxury to visit an exhibition with time to enjoy it at the moment, but having recently seen the film At Eternity's Gate, I was keen to see the Van Gogh and Britain exhibition at Tate Britain. I enjoyed it, but I admit I was a little confused - almost the first thing I learnt was that Van Gogh hadn't yet become an artist when he was living in Britain. And something else I couldn't understand was that he didn't seem to have done any drawing or painting at all during that time - even as an amateur, or a hobby, or simply a doodle. I still find this a bit baffling - in fact, I think he must have done, but the exhibition didn't address this, or what is probably the lack of any work still remaining from this time.
I also struggled a little get particularly excited in most of the rooms, which aroused some curiosity in me - do I no longer have any attention span for exhibitions? Are the crowds entirely off-putting? Have I become more demanding now that I don't have opportunity to do this very often? Or have I become more critical and analytical since I began to explore interpretation in my professional life?
Baffled by my indifference, I finally sat down and looked up a review. And felt vindicated to find many of the same feelings expressed in the Guardian.
All of this said, surrounded by the work of numerous less-known artists, Van-Gogh's work shone. It will always be beautiful. And what caught my attention the most - or perhaps I simply had the courage to confront these less colourful pieces in my sketchbook - were some people studies from his early career as an artist.
I also struggled a little get particularly excited in most of the rooms, which aroused some curiosity in me - do I no longer have any attention span for exhibitions? Are the crowds entirely off-putting? Have I become more demanding now that I don't have opportunity to do this very often? Or have I become more critical and analytical since I began to explore interpretation in my professional life?Baffled by my indifference, I finally sat down and looked up a review. And felt vindicated to find many of the same feelings expressed in the Guardian.
All of this said, surrounded by the work of numerous less-known artists, Van-Gogh's work shone. It will always be beautiful. And what caught my attention the most - or perhaps I simply had the courage to confront these less colourful pieces in my sketchbook - were some people studies from his early career as an artist.
