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Sunflowers. Starry Night. Swirls of colors and emotions are projected on giant walls, columns, the floor beneath your feet. The music swells, the painting of the boat going out to see ripples and pulls you in.

I remember visiting the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam a decade ago (nearly exactly, in fact). I cried in front of the paintings. I have, on the whole, little appreciation for most European art, but this made me feel something.

Today I visited the Beyond Van Gogh exhibit in Milwaukee with my mom. It was an incredible, immersive experience of Van Gogh’s art, played out through video projections in an auditorium-sized space. The exhibit has been in many cities in the U.S. and it was worth the whirlwind overnight trip to the Milwaukee area to experience it.

I wore my sunflower skirt and stood in a room covered in larger-than-life sunflowers. Our shadows danced across the floor and the room was under a gentle hush as we took it all in.

I walked away with a sunflower print mask, a sunflower necklace, and the feeling of spinning around in a legacy of creativity . . . there was turbulence and pain, but so much joy too.

With Love,

Natalie