The Van Gogh Museum will present the exhibition Van Gogh x John Madu: Paint Your Path at the end of May. For the first time, the museum is showing work by a contemporary African artist.
John Madu was inspired by the life and work of Vincent van Gogh for the exhibition. The Nigerian artist selected seven paintings from Van Gogh’s museum collection and created ten new paintings from them.
The exhibition brings these works together and creates an artistic dialogue. “By revisiting Van Gogh’s work and reinterpreting his representations in a West African context, I can bridge local stories with a global audience,” says Madu.
In his paintings, Madu brings together iconic images from European and North American art history with everyday elements from West Africa.
The artist feels personally connected to Van Gogh. Not only as an artist, but also as a person. “Of all the artists who have inspired me, Van Gogh represents artistic individuality the most to me,” he says.
The paintings by Madu and Van Gogh can be seen from today until September 7 on the second floor in the permanent collection of the Van Gogh Museum.