Van Gogh Alive Australia Review

Van Gogh Alive has finished in Australia. However, the new experience Monet in Paris has just started. Read more about it in this Monet in Paris review.

Visit Van Gogh Alive Australia to immerse yourself in the life and works of Vincent Van Gogh, one of the best artists ever lived.

This multi-sensory experience is the most-visited of its kind in the world, with 8 million visitors across over 75 cities.

Van Gogh Alive by Grande Experience allows you to encounter the aspects of a Van Gogh brushstroke as if you were in one of his masterpieces. From unique perspectives, witness his art come to life through light, colour, sound, and fragrance.

We had tickets for the Van Gogh Alive in Perth – find out what we thought of it.

Van Gogh Alive Australia 2022 dates

Van Gogh Alive Newcastle runs from 22nd September to 23rd October 2022.

The exhibition the returns to Sydney from the 8th December.

What to expect at Van Gogh Alive Australia

The website advised to arrive 15 minutes before the time on your ticket. However, we were half an hour early and were able to go in.

Shop & Café

As you walk in, you will be in a large area which consists of Van Gogh’s Bedroom, the Interpretive Area, café, shop (full of Van Gogh themed items), and bar.

You are able to take drinks into the SENSORY4™ area.

Van Gogh’s Bedroom

On the right as you walk in is a life-size model of Van Gogh’s bedroom where you can have your photo taken sitting on the chair or bed.

Interpretive Area

In the Interpretive Area, you will learn about Van Gogh’s life and art, including his most famous paintings.

SENSORY4™

The star of the Van Gogh Alive experience is the SENSORY4™, where you will be immersed in the paintings with all your senses.

You can sit on the floor or stand (there are only a few seats) and listen to the classical music while you see Van Gogh’s paintings come to life on the big screens. Pay attention to the smells too!

Sunflower Room

The Sunflower Room is for you Instagramers – a mirrored room with hundreds of bright yellow sunflowers, a perfect background for selfies.

Van Gogh Alive Sydney Ticket prices

Van Gogh Alive Sydney ticket prices start at A$55 for adults, A$44 for children aged 2 to 15, and A$49 for concession holders. Children under two are free.

Vincent Van Gogh’s Life

On 30th March 1853, Vincent Van Gogh was born in Zundert, a small town in the Netherlands. Son of Theodorus Van Gogh, a Protestant pastor, and Anna Carbentus, he became increasingly aware of the difference between his middle-class wealth and poverty at an early age.

Vincent left school at sixteen and began work at Goupil & Cie, an art dealership that his uncle part-owned. Here he organized exhibitions and sold original and reprints of artwork. The earliest surviving letter of Van Gogh originates from around this time.

In 1876, he was terminated from Goupil et Cie, and spent years trying to find his direction, trying various jobs from a schoolmaster to lay preacher.

Around 1881 he began to take drawing and painting lessons but fell out with his parents when his unrequited love for his cousin caused problems between them.

Vincent met Sien Hoornik, a former prostitute, in early 1882. His friends and family were shocked at his choice of moving in with a pregnant Sien and her five-year-old daughter. This relationship didn’t last as Vincent called it off the following year, and he moved back in with his parents.

Sadly his father died in March 1885, and Vincent moved into his studio, where he started work on his famous painting The Potato Eaters.

In 1886, Vincent arrived in Paris, where his brother Theo was living and managing the Goupil art dealers. He introduced Vincent to the colourful work of modern artists like Claude Monet, who influenced his work.

He began to long for the countryside and moved to Arles, a small town on the River Rhône, in 1888. During this time, he produced some of his most famous artwork, despite falling ill and cutting off his ear.

In a letter he told Theo that he had an idea for a group of artists to live together, whose work Theo could sell. Unfortunately, Vincent could only convince Paul Gauguin to move in with him, but their relationship became tumultuous, leading Van Gogh to cut off his ear.

Vincent ended up in hospital in Arles due to signs of “madness” but was discharged not long after. However, his mental health continued to decline, and he voluntarily admitted himself to Saint-Paul-de-Mausole psychiatric hospital in Saint-Rémy.

During his year in hospital, he managed to paint 150 artworks, including Almond Blossom, that he painted for Theo and his wife, Johanna Bonger, on the birth of their son, who they named after Vincent.

Van Gogh’s work was starting to get noticed, and six of his paintings were shown in Brussels in early 1890. Not long after, he left the hospital and headed to Auvers-sur-Oise, an artists’ village near Paris.

After visiting Theo and Jo in July 1890, Vincent became very concerned about his financial stability, which became too much to bear and culminated in his suicide on 27 July 1890.

He left behind over 850 paintings and nearly 1,300 works on paper, some of which were displayed in a memorial exhibition held by his brother.

Sadly only six months later, Theo died of syphilis-related physical and mental symptoms, and Vincent’s paintings became the property of Theo’s widow, Jo van Gogh-Bonger. She began to raise awareness of Van Gogh’s incredible talent by lending his paintings to museums worldwide.

When Jo died in 1925, her son loaned his uncle’s paintings to the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, where his fame grew. Eleven years later, the art was moved to its own building, and Queen Juliana opened the Van Gogh Museum on 2 June 1973.

Is the Van Gogh Alive Exhibit worth it?

I’ve always admired Vincent Van Gogh, but I truly fell in love with his work when visiting the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. If you haven’t been, it’s a must-see if you find yourself in the Netherland’s capital. As well as seeing Van Gogh’s most famous masterpieces, you will learn about his life and view how much his moods are reflected in his work.

So was Van Gogh Alive worth it? Absolutely! If you admire his work, or even enjoy art, you will love this exhibition. We thought it was worth the money, considering we spent over 90 minutes there.

I already knew a lot about his life and work but I still found the Interpretive Area fascinating. The SENSORY4™ part was incredible, though, taking you on a journey through his life through his paintings. It was amazing to see his art on such a large scale and accompanied by music and smells.

The exhibition was well organised with helpful and friendly staff. It wasn’t over crowded and you always had a good view of the screens.

I’m so glad we went and I highly recommend going.

Van Gogh Alive FAQ