Earlier this month, we visited the hottest show in Chicago—The Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit. The installation lets visitors explore masterpieces by Vincent Van Gogh through 360-degree digital projections and an immersive light and sound show. Sitting in a large hall surrounded by changing images of the artist’s works, we were enthralled by bright, swirling Post-Impressionist colors. As we were mesmerized by the atmosphere, I couldn’t shake a strong feeling of déjà vu. I’ve been here before. I felt like this before. But when and where? Then, finally, halfway through the show, it suddenly clicked!
Of course, Auvers!
We visited Auvers-sur-Oise in the summer of 2009 by taking a day trip out of Paris. This picturesque village, 40 minutes northwest of the French capital, had long been the place that I wanted to visit. In law school, during breaks between studying, I became fascinated by Van Gogh. I read his biography, numerous books on Post-Impressionism, and Van Gogh’s letters to his brother and art dealer Theo. I also took every chance to crisscross the country to see Van Gogh paintings at various U.S. art museums. By the time I graduated, I was well-versed not only in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Rules of Evidence but also in the biography and works of one of the most celebrated artists in history. Because this Van Gogh-mania period of my life coincided with our trip to France, we couldn’t miss a chance to make a pilgrimage to Auvers.
Auvers-sur-Oise has always been a magnet for artists. Before Van Gogh, young Cézanne, under the fatherly tutelage of more experienced Camille Pissarro, took his first steps here, painting the French countryside in grey, drab colors. Later, Cezanne’s style would evolve, and he would go on to become the “father of modern art,” influencing generations of artists with his geometric renderings of the world. Pissarro, although often overlooked, worked in Auvers too, depicting local landscapes in the Impressionist style. Other French artists, such as Daubigny, Corot, and Daumier, immortalized the village in their works as well. Yet, Auvers is mainly associated with Vincent Van Gogh, who lived and painted here in the last weeks of his life.
The day we spent in Auvers was like the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit experience as we walked through the scenes from his masterpieces. Cypress trees reached the swirling skies, shimmering yellow wheat fields spread in front of us, green vines climbed up brick walls, as they did around Van Gogh and in his works.
The timing was perfect. We visited Auvers in July and saw with our own eyes what Van Gogh saw and painted in the summertime (Vincent arrived in Auvers in May of 1890 and died two months later). For the entire day, we were immersed in the bright summer colors of this French village, verdant greenery, blue skies, and fluffy clouds—straight out of the world’s most famous paintings.
To promote tourism, the village has installed reproductions of Van Gogh's works next to the sights that he painted. We enjoyed the scavenger hunt, discovering place after place painted by the artist. A lot of locations looked exactly as Van Gogh found them 120 years before us. The city hall, for example, hasn't changed a bit. The local church also looked nearly identical as depicted in his painting, except it was covered in scaffolds and was closed for restorations on the day we visited. Van Gogh was a prolific artist and painted nearly every corner of Auvers.
The mandatory stops also included the house of Dr. Gachet, who cared for Van Gogh following his release from a mental health asylum, and whose melancholic portrait Van Gogh painted. We also stopped by Auberge Ravoux to see Van Gogh’s austere bedroom on the top floor. Here, he took his last breath on July 29, 1890, two days after shooting himself in the chest in the nearby wheat field. And of course, we paid our respect to the master resting in peace at the local cemetery right next to his beloved brother. The tall cypresses towering as obelisks (in Van Gogh’s own words) solemnly dotted the graveyard.
For Van Gogh lovers, Auvers is a true paradise. It's easy to see why this place attracted so many painters. It's a tranquil village with bucolic landscapes waiting to be captured on canvas. The village is also an inviting place for spending some quiet time away from a busy city. As we strolled the streets of Auvers, Julia was daydreaming about spending a week here or just lingering a little bit longer. And in the end, she almost got her wish granted.
After the day of sightseeing, we decided to have an improvised picnic on the grounds of the nearby Château de Auvers. Sitting among the delicately manicured bushes, we had a generous spread of deli salads, cheeses, fruit, and a bottle of wine bought at a local grocery store. We enjoyed ourselves and toasted to Auvers, France, and Van Gogh. However, when it was time to pack and catch a train back to Paris, we suddenly discovered that we were trapped in this garden. Yes, the gate through which we entered was now locked. Most likely, the chateau caretakers simply didn't notice us before locking the gate and going home for the night.
“What do we do now?” I asked no one in particular while testing the durability of the gate and the lock.
As always, my friend had a brilliant idea.
“OK, we'll break inside the chateau and spend the rest of our French trip there. I love Auvers!”
“Let’s see, that’s trespassing, breaking and entering. What other crimes do you have in mind?” I said dryly. I still was a law student after all.
We finally decided against staying the night at the chateau garden and clumsily hoisted ourselves over the fence. We were still celebrating our escape when, upon turning the corner, we saw another gate on the side of the chateau, wide open, with people easily strolling in and out.
“What a boring way to live,” Julia commented, and we casually strolled past, as if we didn’t just climb this very fence a hundred meters away.
We left Auvers after one short day trip, no matter how much we wanted to stay and how much it wanted to keep us. There is something magical about being in a place where great art was created and where it still exists, in the sky and the trees and the grass, in the old buildings and vast fields. It’s a place we want to come back to. And possibly stay.
