Immersive Van Gogh Exhibits Are About to Take Denver by Storm
Van Gogh Alive turns 3,000 images and paintings into a multi-sensory experience in The Hangar at Aurora’s Stanley Marketplace.Barbara Urzua •
July 9, 2021
Gone are the days where the only way you consumed art was by standing before a frame. For centuries, curators have diligently placed art pieces onto gallery walls. Now, thanks to the rise in popularity of immersive art, Denverites can physically step into paintings by the infamous Vincent van Gogh.
On July 9, Stanley Marketplace became home to
Van Gogh Alive: the experience, the highly anticipated multi-sensory exhibition designed to thrust attendees into the life and work of influential post-impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh. Created in part by Grande Experiences and hosted by the Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) through September 26, the attraction features more than 3,000 images and paintings, projected onto massive screens on the walls
In early January, Eric Jaenike and Jennifer Mosquera of immersive-arts duo Prismajic met over drinks with Amber Blais and Staza Stone of circus-arts troupe Rainbow Militia. Both groups had spent the past few years pushing the boundaries of immersive arts in Denver and were mutual admirers of each other s work. They started talking about how they might collaborate, and it didn t take long before they settled on an idea: a performance set in the clouds and rooted in Greek mythology.
During the meeting, Jaenike and Mosquera conjured up images of clouds, lighting, starlight and an idyllic cabin in the woods. “Amber and I left that meeting and came up with the entire plot and storyline, says Stone.