Sunday, March 18, 2012
Cost: $120
This compelling Van Gogh exhibit has inspired us to offer you this wonderful day trip to enjoy it at the Philadelphia Museum of Art on Sunday, March 18.
The exhibition focuses on the extraordinary burst of creativity and experimentation during the last five years of Van Gogh’s turbulent life. You’ll find forty-five paintings, on loan from private collectors and museums worldwide, including works from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the Centraal Museum in Utrecht, and The Hague. You’ll also find a major source of inspiration for Van Gogh’s paintings — a display of stunning Japanese woodblock prints.
When he moved to Arles in 1888, Van Gogh wrote that being in the south of France was the closest thing to going to Japan. During these last years, he created still lifes and landscapes, experimenting with depth of field and focus. He used shifting perspectives and brought familiar objects “up close” into the foreground. In “Almond Blossom,” painted in 1890, while at the asylum in Saint Remy, Van Gogh looks up through the stunning white branches of the almond tree supported by an intense blue sky.
About the painting “Ears of Wheat,” also painted while at the asylum, the artist wrote to his friend and painter Paul Gauguin, “I tried to paint the sound of the wind in the ears of the wheat.” Here there is no sky at all; just the long, sweeping brushstrokes suggesting the swaying grasses.”
In the painting “Undergrowth with Two Figures” neither the treetops nor the skyline are significant. With the ghostly images, unconventionally colored trees, and muted foliage, he creates immense anticipation.
In the recent NY Times review (February 3, 2012), Roberta Smith wrote, “These paintings convey another aspect of the restless intelligence, always looking, always striving, that permeates and is also given a new sense of order and forthrightness by this marvelous show. Van Gogh knew what he was about and wanted us to also know.”
In addition to the Van Gogh exhibit, you can visit many of the other wonderful artworks in the museum’s collection. Whether it’s American, Asian, or European art you like, there are over 200 galleries for you to explore and enjoy. Other current exhibitions include works by the architect Zaha Hadid and photographer Zoe Strauss.
Here’s what the trip includes:
The bus departs from the back of the former Ames parking lot in the Kingston Plaza at 8am and returns at approximately 7:30pm. The cost includes
- Timed exhibit tickets and audio tour for “Van Gogh Up Close”
- Luxury coach and gratuities
- Champagne breakfast en route
- Box dinner (see below) with a selection of wines on the return trip
Lunch is “dutch-treat” in any of the museum restaurants.This trip is based on a minimum of 25 participants.
To Reserve: Reservations are on a first come first served basis. Your early sign-up will ensure a spot. Make your check for $120 payable to AAUW, and mail it along with your phone number and email address to: Linda Gold, 1 Jacobs Lane, New Paltz, NY 12561.
For further information, email Linda at artladyLG@aol.com or call Linda at 845-255-5256 or ViVi Hlavsa at 845-331-0155. There will be no refunds unless your spot is filled by someone on the waiting list.