The Amarillo Art Institute’s (AAI) Arts in the Sunset is presenting the highly acclaimed “Impressionists Immersive Exhibition,” coming to Amarillo on Thursday, May 16 and running through July 17.
This exhibit will be the second traveling exhibit the art gallery has housed, following the “Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition,” which ran the summer of 2023.
The “Impressionists Immersive Exhibition” will be on display in Amarillo as its second stop in the nation, having previously been on display in Boise, Idaho, following a two-year tour in Europe.
“This came about in a very unique way. We initially received a notification that the exhibit had come to the U.S. They had plans for a second location after Boise, and it fell through,” said AAI Executive Director Rachel Flores. “They were seeking another art hub and were considering Las Vegas. … But we reached out, and they did research on us and learned more about what we do here. They felt we better aligned with the exhibit’s mission, and it would have a greater community impact and ultimately chose to have the second viewing be here in Amarillo over Las Vegas.”
“Impressionists” is the first immersive exhibition to cover a whole artistic movement rather than a single artist. The exhibit will illustrate and bring to life the revolutionary Impressionist movement, named the most important pictorial change since the Renaissance. The exhibit covers paintings by the movement’s famed artists such as Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir, Morisot, Manet, Degas, Pissarro, Gauguin, Cezanne, and Toulouse-Lautrec.
“For those that were able to see the ‘Sistine Chapel,’ this will be an even greater viewing experience because it is such a broad range of really famous artists, and we get to experience their pieces in a very unique way, with them being moving paintings. It is very emotion evoking and immersive, with 3D interactive panels that you can take photos with and are educational. I am very excited to bring this to Amarillo. I think it will elevate the cultural experience we are able to provide for our city,” Flores said.
Flores said this exhibit is not only unique for its presentation of the artworks, but also for the overall collection as a whole offering different artists, which is very rarely seen in a traveling exhibit. The exhibit includes an immersive room, which creates a multi-sensory, fascinating and fun experience, with more than 1,000 moving masterpieces projected on immersive screens. Innovative 3D interactive panels explain the movements, key innovations, their influences, and how these paintings influence all of modern art that followed. This will be an opportunity for locals and visitors alike to experience iconic paintings in an up-close and immersive setting. Some of the well-known pieces included in the exhibit will include “Starry Night,” “Water Lilies,” “Waiting,” “In the Conservatory” and many more.
“This exhibit focuses on the entire Impressionist period and how it affected the modern art that we have today, so I think that historical aspect is really interesting,” Flores said.
“Each of these artists came from all different walks of life, and it is evident in their work. When you look at Impressionism, it doesn’t all look the same, and from Gauguin’s more native and primitive type subject matter, Van Gogh’s distinct style, to Monet’s, getting to experience all these different artists, each viewer is bound to find one that they resonate with,” Flores added.
The exhibit will be open Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. until 7 p.m., with the last entry of admission at 6 p.m. On Sundays, the exhibit will be open from 1 until 5 p.m., with the last entry at 4 p.m.
Tickets range from $15-$25, based on age. Proceeds from the exhibit go to the Amarillo Art Institute and its art programs.
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at artsinthesunset.org.