After seeing ads for something called “Beyond Van Gogh Calgary” in my Facebook feed for the last few months, I was excited to go see what it was all about.

We (my husband and I) went to go see it at the end of August, and the experience was fantastic! My reaction at the end was WOW!

I don’t want to give away too many details because I think the experience of walking through it is all the more impressive when you don’t know exactly what it is you are walking in to ahead of time.

We really had no idea what to expect other than what was shown in the advertising material, which promised an “immersive presentation” of viewing Van Gogh’s artwork on gigantic screens using “cutting edge projections technology”. That sounded good to me! We bought our tickets online (calgaryvangogh.com) for timed entry tickets, arrived at the BMO centre for our afternoon time slot, and in we went!

So what is it exactly? The exhibition is about experiencing Van Gogh’s artwork up close and yet without a single one of his paintings physically present.

In many ways the Beyond Van Gogh exhibition was a really beautiful way to see all (or what seemed like all) of his work together in one place and on a large scale. It also included information about his life and quotes from his letters.

I’ve had the opportunity to see one of Van Gogh’s self portraits at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam (I highly recommend this museum by the way!), but that is the only one of his paintings that I have seen in person.

At the Beyond Van Gogh experience, I quickly discovered that it is one thing to stand in front of the original portrait, and quite another to see that portrait blown up to the size of an entire wall and then discover that the eyes are blinking at you!

Overall the experience was really impressive and so well put together. I was blown away by the creativity and the amount of time and detailed work that must have gone into creating this display of Van Gogh’s artwork.

The way they paired his artwork with music and motion was incredibly clever, with so many little details that a person might have to visit multiple times to catch everything.

My favourite thing from the experience was definitely the moment when Van Gogh’s Almond Blossom painting was featured and suddenly came to life with hundreds of flower petals drifting around the room!

I’ll give you a head’s up here that if you suffer from vertigo or motion sickness, you might want to sit down for some portions of the presentation (the Almond Blossom one in particular). There are benches available, and we saw many people simply take a seat on the floor to enjoy the presentation.

Am I glad we went? Absolutely! To be honest I’m actually tempted to go a second time! If I could do it again I would definitely stay longer next time and watch part of the presentation twice, just to catch more of the details. There is so much to look at and absorb, that I think a repeat or longer visit would be well worth it.

I also had fun looking through the gift shop display at the end of the exhibition - if you are an art lover, here’s your chance to pick up some post card prints, keychains, bags, etc with your favourite Van Gogh paintings. I bought a little notebook and keychain myself, and a reusable tote bag with The Starry Night on it, which I love!

Interestingly, Beyond Van Gogh is actually one of several Van Gogh exhibitions that are currently touring around the world, so if you are not in Alberta at the moment, there may be opportunities to see something similar in other cities.

There is also the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam if you are able to travel to see the real paintings in person. But if you are in the Calgary area this fall, this is definitely an event to check out!

Things to know before you go:

• Check out the Beyond Van Gogh Calgary website for all the details about tickets, FAQ, and current Health and Safety guidelines.

• Tickets include a specific entry time, with an option to upgrade to a flexible entry time that gives you are 2 hour window before and after your selected time

• For something even a little more interactive, check out the yoga classes that are available inside the exhibit!

The Beyond Van Gogh exhibit is live right now in Calgary at the BMO Centre (tickets available through to October 8th, 2021). If you are an art lover, museum lover, or just looking for something fun to do, I highly recommend it!

Have fun and stay safe!

- Amanda