Art and Technology: Reviving Van Gogh for a New Generation

Abstract

Our world is ever-changing due to technology’s rapid progress; some changes have been beneficial while others have been detrimental. My Honors Thesis focuses on exploring whether such progress has had a positive or negative impact on the art world and its audiences. As such, the purpose of this paper is to illustrate the difference between direct observation of still works of art versus being able to be fully immersed in said works via projection technologies. Starting with a brief history of the artist Vincent Van Gogh, as well as an examination of the Impressionist movement in Paris in the 19th c., will lead me to an analysis of direct observation of his paintings, which was how works during his lifetime were meant to be experienced. I will then take my experience of the Beyond Van Gogh exhibition and compare the two. While each method of viewing art has its merits, the ability to emotionally connect with Van Gogh’s works is magnified by the immersive format, and I will show how these technologies have the power to revive history for a whole new generation of young artists.