Inspired by Vincent Van Gogh

 Vincent Van Gogh, 1853 - 1890

Our visit to the magnificent Van Gogh museum was much anticipated, but we were a little worried that Ariana might find it boring. Thus we devised a plan that should this be the case, we would each take turns viewing the masterpieces while the other stayed with her in the children's play area. However, this didn't turn out to be necessary. During our two hours at the museum, Ariana showed no sign or look of boredom at all. She enjoyed viewing the paintings as much as we did. She commented, asked questions and eagerly went from one wall to the next, even sitting down next to us at times to contemplate. We each had our favourites.

Ariana's favourite Van Gogh painting:

                                  
                                                          Still life of Poppies and Daisies.

Papa's favourite painting:

                                                               The Corn Field

Nana's favourite painting:

                                                           Starry, Starry Night

We all stood and looked at the very famous Sunflowers masterpiece for some time. It seems to glow, so luminous are the shades of yellow.

Ariana was also interested in this painting that Vincent Van Gogh did of his bedroom, which the museum had recreated in an exact life-sized diarama next to it.

                              
I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised to see the museum hawking a variety of unlikely products, all bearing the famous name, in its gift shop. Van Gogh butter cookies in tins depicting his likeness, vied for space with Van Gogh umbrellas and Sunflowers pencil cases, aprons and even tea cosies. Vincent's tortured eyes loomed out from all manner of T-shirts in a countless variety of colours. There was something vaguely unsettling or 'wrong' to me about featuring such artistic genius in this way, but I couldn't quite define why I felt that way.

(One of the displays in the museum gift shop.)Most artists harbour hope that their work will live on after their deaths. However, I was possessed with the uneasy feeling that this kind of commercialism reduced beauty to banality.

Another aspect of me, though, wondered if ingesting Van Gogh cookies is simply revering his genius in a modern, innovative way? Maybe, I thought, if Van Gogh were alive today, he'd be posting images of his paintings on facebook and gathering comments declaring ' 100 people plus, like this'.
Ariana certainly had no qualms about purchasing a Van Gogh poppy pencil case for herself. She stated matter-of-factly, "I need a pencil case, and I may as well have one that reminds me of when I was here and saw all those beautiful paintings he did."

I found her statement full of the purest kind of optimism. I guess in my misplaced elitist way, I had been trying to protect Van Gogh's paintings from a kind of cheap sentimentality. Ariana's words, devoid of my adult cynicism, offered them a homage which had escaped me; that they can be represented in the most mundane objects and ordinary moments of life, and in doing so, continue to enhance the beauty and truth of what that life reflects to us.

 
                                                         Ariana, a study in beauty.