Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Contemporary Connections: Artaud and van Gogh in Exhibition | Inventing Van Gogh

Based on the categories and the unusual designations put forward by Artaud in "Van Gogh, the Man Suicided by Society," this exhibition will comprise some forty paintings, a selection of van Gogh's drawings and letters, together with graphic works by the poet-illustrator Antonin Artaud; now at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris until July 6th.


 “Artaud’s text is very interesting since it goes against all the perceived ideas on Van Gogh, and above all against a theory which appeared at the time of the diagnosis of Van Gogh. Artaud wrote Van Gogh was not mad. He was driven to suicidal despair by a society that rejected his work.

I think the emotions we carry with us are human emotions, not anxiety, it is artists that carry anxiety, the anxiety of the time, and we can see in them contemporary anxieties, but they show us how we can go beyond them in art and I think it can be a great help. It does not get rid of questions, which are human, or our aspirations, we just have to show them in the most beautiful way possible.” 
- Isabell Cahn, Musee d’Orsay (Euronews.com)



To learn more about this exhibition or listen to a sample of the exhibition audioguide, visit the following links:

Musée d'Orsay
Excerpts from the Artaud / Van Gogh Exhibition Audioguide

- "Postcard From Paris: Artaud and van Gogh" - The New York Times
"Descent into madness entwines Van Gogh, Artaud at Paris exhibition" - Reuters
"Artaud and Van Gogh Against Society" - Hyperallergic