Sunday 17 March 2013

van Gogh revisited

Torell Nederland

I was pleased to read in Honour MacMillan’s column earlier this week that the recreation of van Gogh’s Arles was back up, though it no longer resides on the Arles sim. It’s a build I have visited many times, but I've never felt that I have explored it as well as I should have, so I was glad for another chance.


The new build at Torell Nederland, a sim devoted to arts and culture, is well worth exploring. While it would be near impossible to recreate the sights and sounds that van Gogh experienced, Mudpuddle Cleanslate’s re-creations gives us a taste of what he might have seen and experienced as he walked through the town and countryside.

Torell Nederland
I was very young when I was first exposed to van Gogh, through a movie documenting his life. At that age, the themes of his troubled mind and instability went way over my head. His art went over my head too. Let’s face it, my experience of art was pretty limited at the time - I remember getting an A for a sculpture out of macaroni and spaghetti in Grade 4 art class, but that’s about it.

But the movie stuck with movie through the years, this portrayal of an artist, so filled with passion that it exploded into his work. That memory never went away, even though my own personal tastes turned to photography and another great and passionate artist, Edward Weston. It wasn't until later that I rediscovered van Gogh, when I got to see one of his paintings -- The Starry Night -- in person for the first time and was struck by the intensity of the work.
Mudpuddle seems to suffer from a similar fascination - as it was in Arles, the new sim is dotted by his recreations of van Gogh's paintings, complete with a copy of the original on an easel.

Like both originals, the new Arles is well worth a visit. But pack a picnic basket and take your time to explore and let the ambiance wash over you.

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