Let's Van Gogh!

Couldn't resist the title - blame my Uncle Dave and my bro-in-law Michael.  So yes, pun intended.

On Thursday, we had the day off for Korea's Memorial day.  J had found that there was a Van Gogh exhibit in Seoul and asked if I'd like to go.  I said yes, thinking that it would be fun and what the heck, I like Starry Night just as much as the next person.  So we Googled the directions, tried to make sure that we were headed to the right art museum/gallery, and caught the bus in Dongtan at about noon to head to Seoul.  When we got to Seoul, we had planned to take the bus all the way to Seoul Station, but the stop before the station, we saw this:

and realized that we'd arrived!  So off the bus we went and took some pictures outside the building.  I have a great one of me next to Vincent's nose... but there's a lot of pix, so I didn't include it here.  So we went inside, the exhibition starts and ends in the gift shop (Disneyland really started a revolution with that idea).  We wandered around the gift shop a bit and then headed to buy our tickets.  The tickets were 16000 won for adults.  Not bad, really.  Then it was up the stairs to this first part.

I nerded out HARD when I saw the below.  I mean, the brush strokes, the colors, it shouldn't work and yet it does!  Most of the exhibition was just like this - the paintings have been put on canvas which is then lit from inside so that the colors really pop!  You can also see the details of the brush strokes.  This was less 'look at his works' and more 'understand the man behind the paintings.'  We were given headsets that were audio guides in English (with Korean and at least one other language, too).

I didn't realize at first that this was crows over a wheat field with stormy skies.  What really struck me is that everything he painted was based on where he lived in Europe, and yet my mind was constantly drawn back to Kansas and spending time with my grandparents.

He had a rather tragic life, really.  I didn't know much about him (outside of the fact that he cut his ear off) before this.  Now I really want to watch the Benedict Cumberbatch movie about him - 'Painted with Words.'  Of course, a quick search found me a movie called 'At Eternity's Gate' where Willem Dafoe plays Van Gogh in his last days and I LOVE Willem Dafoe, so I may have to start with that one.

The signs, which say 'Please Do Touch' really threw me off - I'm so used to being told NOT to touch at museums!  I love how he does stormy skies.  I now know that it's about the loneliness he felt, but I've just always been drawn to storms.  Not to say that I don't sometimes feel lonely (who doesn't), but I've always loved the colors of storms.

So after a quick video, we came to the first real room.

Many tables were set up with quotes from him, items that he would have used/had while he lived in Holland, things that were sources of inspiration for him.

Including a skull!  So if you want a perfect example of some of the differences between J and I, let me give you a for-instance.  Behind this table was...

A wax figure of Vincent.  J was thrilled to get a picture with the man (though I personally find wax figures to be one of the creepiest things on the planet).  We got a couple good pictures of her with Vince, then we got the following pictures of me...

Which I would name 'Flirting with a skull - a series'
Here we are, grinning at each other...

... he made me bashful...

... fluttering my eyelashes at him.  J was laughing a LOT during this photo shoot, so they're not totally in focus, but it was so much fun.  I had to laugh because there was a Korean couple who were also posing... but with a plate of lemons.  I'm telling you, if I had an online dating profile, these pix would be on it!

The tools of the artists' trade.

I just loved how big they made the paintings so that you could really appreciate the brush strokes and the colors!

From a couple different perspectives - still made me think of Kansas.

And the sunflowers!  So many sunflowers!!  I literally felt like my grandparents were with me all throughout this exhibit.  I mean, again, I know he never went to Kansas, but the fields, the flowers, the skies... made me miss my peoples.

So the next part was about his life in the south of France.

Now this - this was awesome.  The painting is behind glass, which makes me wonder if this one was actually the real painting, not a replica.  However, you see that figure in the box?

Well, here's a HUGE replica of just that figure.  They wanted you to be able to really appreciate his brush strokes, so this is at least 8 feet tall.  The colors and strokes are so fascinating.  I nerded out all over again.  Thankfully, J didn't mind my nerding out.  She actually got really excited about it because I was showing how much I was enjoying it, too.  It was really nice to be around someone that I didn't feel the need to censor myself around.

Another screen of a painting - harvest time.

They had interactive parts for kids to draw themselves, or another plate of lemons, or whatever.  It was interesting to see it so interactive.  The kids were pretty into it, too, which was nice to see.

So tucked away behind the big replica of the man in the painting, was Vincent's bedroom in the yellow house.  Here's the replica of the painting he did...

and here's the reproduction of the actual room.  It was pretty cool.  I actually found this on my own and then had to tell J about it.  She had to come and get pictures in the room.

I did the obligatory selfie.

Next was a shadow video of Vincent and the guy he lived with in the yellow house.  It was a really interesting way to represent his descent into madness.  We Googled the info later to find out that it was Paul Gauguin who shared the house with him, and was arrested after Vincent cut off his ear.  Apparently since the house was covered in blood, the police thought Gauguin was the one who cut off Vincent's ear.  From a psychological standpoint, it's fascinating.  From a human standpoint, it's tragic.

The video itself was an interesting take on a tragic story.  I feel like there's a lot of symbolism in that you're just seeing shadows of the men themselves.

So we went on to what was basically a bit of an interlude.  It showed this replica, which again you are encouraged to touch.

And then this nifty touch screen.  I guess it's meant to show the progression of a painting from the initial sketch to the final product.  I am soooo not an artist, but I can appreciate the process/talent.

I thought this was pretty cool.

Then came the final room... super sad.

J wanted a pic with Vincent again.  Hehe - she is a trooper on those crutches, man!

A wall of the paintings and accompanied sketches.

I'm blown away by his use of color.

I mean, so amazingly pretty!

I had to get a picture of me with the Starry Night canvas.  I also had to wait for a Korean family to get thru before I could take a good pic with it.  :)

How they have it blown up.  Stunning.

I like this one, too.

Again, the skies!

And the tragedy of the end of his life.

I think J was happy to be able to sit down again!

The almond blossoms - again, just amazing.

Apparently 6 months after Vincent died, his brother Theo (with whom he was super close) also passed away.  "The rest side by side in the little cemetery amid the wheat fields of Auvers" Jo van Gogh-Bonger in Letters to his Brother, 1914.

The stormy skies, the wheat fields, the crows... stunning.

J had to take a pic of me... and allow me a moment because CHECK OUT THAT COLLAR BONE!!!  Hehehe, one year ago, it was hidden ;)

I didn't realize how prolific a painter he was.  So many amazing works of art.

I love how they did this, btw.

A few close-ups.

I want this moth tattooed on me somewhere - see the skull?  Friggin' AWESOME!

And the painting that is the basis of my pin.  I find it funny because I have a T-shirt that has a skull in a top hat smoking a cigarette.  Apparently I like the imagery.

From the other side.

A few more close-ups.

I like this bat.

And the final sunflowers.

This tree is so beautiful.  Made me think of my tree-hugging friend Ana.  Hehehe.

My favorite pic of me from the day.  After this we gave our headsets back, since we'd reached the end of the exhibit.  It took us about an hour and a half to go thru all of it.

A few final canvases.  I liked this one, reminds me of Frida.

Still life.

"If Van Gogh was alive in modernity."

So we went down to the cafe level in order to find something to eat.  J and I decided to go for burgers, since only the cafe (patisserie) and the burger place were open.  There really weren't many people there, which I think was because it was Memorial day, but I didn't mind that we had the place to ourselves.  It was really rather nice.

So I did get a souvenir, and I now have something on my bag that makes it my own.  It's not a bunch of patches, but it still designates this bag as MINE!  Hehehe, I love my Vince.

This is what happens when you're super hungry and then think, 'maybe people will want to see my lunch.'  I can assure you, at the end all that was left was some lonely onions.

We then went to Itaewon because we planned to have dinner at Vatos.  We had told people that we'd be there at 6pm if they wanted to join us, and we had some time to kill.  So first we found J a backpack so that she wouldn't have to use mine anymore.  We found a rather nice one from a street vendor.  The only problem that we ran into was that the vendor would only accept cash and the only ATM was all in Korean.  So I let J use the cash that I had, with the cash that she had, and the vendor decided she could take 34000 won instead of 35000 for the bag.

After that adventure, we went to a coffee shop just down from Vatos.  J had hot chocolate and I had an iced caramel macchiato.  We probably would have walked around Itaewon more, except that it started raining on us.  So instead we relaxed, chatted, and people-watched from the second floor of the coffee shop.

Then a little after 6, we went to Vatos.  J doesn't drink, but they did have virgin margaritas on the menu.  So I had a signature margarita (and the first sip was ALL tequila) and she had a frozen orange margarita.  She said it was pretty good - I'll take her word on it, as I was pretty stoked for mine.

Aren't they pretty?!

She got her usual - the roasted veggie quesadilla.  I decided to try the mushroom and spinach quesadilla.  They were both as awesome as I expected them to be.  So, so good.  Also, I apparently wanted mushrooms that day because the burger I'd had was a mushroom burger.  And my pasta that I'm making tomorrow will have mushrooms, peppers, and zucchini.  Huh... you know, I'm almost a vegetarian... except when we go to Korean BBQ ;)

After my signature, I decided that I needed a Zonarosa.  Although to be fair, I had decided DAYS ago that I'd have those 2 margaritas and no more.  Who would ever have thought that guava margarita and XX amber would be so darn good?!?

So after Vatos, we decided to head home.  We took the subway (the subway app that I downloaded when I got the phone has proven 100% helpful) and then the bus.  We talked most of the way home and then had to go thru more of the rain.  What a day to not check the weather, right?!  

We decided to go to my place and watch a movie.  We ended up watching The Bank Job, which she described as 'proper English' which made me laugh to no end.  After the movie, she went home and I gave myself a face mask.  All in all, it was a really nice day of hanging out with a friend, seeing some cool stuff regarding Van Gogh, having good food, and watching a fun movie.  By the way, the guy who plays Dave in The Bank Job is also in Good Omens as Mr. Young and it took me for friggin' EVER to place him!!!  So glad I finally figured that one out. 

So now the plan is to have my BH weekend.  I'm going to go grocery shopping after work so that I don't have to leave my apt for any reason, unless I decide to be social.  I'm going to be making a veggie-tastic penne with tomato sauce, and stir fry pork with veggies.  I'm also thinking of renting Pitch Black, The Chronicles of Riddick, and Riddick from Amazon.  Once I finish Congo, that is.  Then J and I have decided we need to watch the movie cuz Tim Curry is in it.  Much love to all, MUAH!