Bengaluru, 19 JUNE

The next best thing to standing before Vincent van Gogh’s Wheatfield with Crows — lost in the haunting loneliness he evoked with just a few brushstrokes — is being immersed in it. The Real Van Gogh Immersive Experience, a 30-minute visual and sensory journey, will open at Bharatiya Mall, Bengaluru, on 29 June.

Co-curator and producer Nikhil Chinappa stresses that nothing compares to seeing Van Gogh’s original work. However, immersive shows like this, he says, can draw people closer to the artist’s inner world. “Van Gogh is popular, yes. But knowing him means understanding what drove him — and why he painted the way he did.”

Curator Hemali Vadalia, a New York-based artist and animator who worked on Loving Vincent, says this show stands apart from previous Van Gogh installations in India. Built on a 200-page research document detailing Van Gogh’s style, the team digitally animated his works with great precision. Bengaluru animator Naveen Kiran Boktapa brought these pieces to life — from curling waves to bobbing ships.

Projected using a powerful 22,000-lumen system — a first in India — the show also explores the science behind Van Gogh’s yellow period, possibly linked to Digitalis toxicity. The result is a deeply moving and illuminating experience.