Background: I joined the National Gallery as a member so I could have a hot date with Vincent Van Gogh and see the ‘Lovers and Poets’ exhibition of his work which, by the time I did it, was practically sold out. I got in and it did not disappoint. I agree with the write-ups, it was a once-in-a-century exhibition with an unparalleled number of his paintings together.
The place was hot, sweaty and overcrowded. Somehow, though, the show stood head and shoulders above it all. How it was put together was breathtaking.
It told a compelling story - that Van Gogh was so much more than the tired old cliches of ‘went mad’, ‘cut off his ear’ and ‘painted sunflowers’.
Van Gogh had an expressive talent beyond measure and the thing that most impressed me was Vincent Van Gogh was an activist artist.
A shout-out to some of the activist artists - Vincent Van Gogh included - who inspire me. I’m in awe of and inspired by their talent, courage and their singularity of vision. Today, we all need to be activist artists, I believe.
Ai WeiWei
Grayson Perry
Sheperd Fairey
Steve Jobs
Bernard Leach and Barbara Hepworth
Banksy
Is Elon Musk an activist artist?
It doesn’t take money to make an impact, or to ‘put a dent in the universe’, it takes consciousness.