Van Gogh and Britain, Tate Britain - ★★★★★ - Until August 11, 2019


Van Gogh spent only two and a half years in London but its influence on his life and his art endured. Fluent in English, he was deeply affected by his reading of Dickens, George Elliot and John Bunyan among others. The social activism that was a hallmark of Van Gogh's time in the capital marked him profoundly as did the artistic world, and particularly the prints, he encountered here. This year's EY exhibition at the Tate, the first Van Gogh exhibition held here since 1947, brings together so many Van Gogh masterpieces that it is an absolute delight. It places Van Gogh and his work in a new context, moving us beyond the cliché of the tortured, misunderstood visionary that so often surrounds the artist and his work. And while deepening our understanding of Van Gogh, it also introduces us to his influence on British art starting with Roger Fry's 1910 exhibition of the "post-impressionists" and then highlighting the work of such British painters as Harold Gilman, Spencer Gore and Francis Bacon who valued Van Gogh's inspiration. This is going to be the hot-ticket exhibition of the summer. It really is a must-see and offers a brilliant re-introduction to some familiar masterpieces while expanding our sense of the artist and his place in the world of art.

 Reviewed by J.C.

  Our Score:  ☆☆☆☆☆ 

WHEN, WHERE, GETTING THERE:
Until August 11, 2019
Daily: 10 am - 6 pm
Tate Britain, Southwark
Nearest tube: Southwark
https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on
Map & Location: Millbank, Westminster, London SW1P 4RG, UK

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