The Art of Interactive Art

Flutter Experience, Los Angeles

Yes, I have tickets to go to the Van Gogh Experience and the Monet Experience in Los Angeles. I am so excited! I think we all want to be a part of the art, and this is a way to envelop ourselves in the work of these famous artists.  I remember the first time I really got a feel for being a part of the art. Years ago when SFMOMA was at its old location on Van Ness Avenue there was a piece of interactive art. Next to the gallery with the Jeff Koons Michael Jackson and Monkey piece was a large tan canvas cube.  As I walked by it the gallery attendant said you can lift it up and go inside. I couldn’t believe it. Of course, I wanted to go inside a piece of art in a museum gallery!  Remember in Dead Poets Society when Robin Williams, “O Captain my Captain”, had the boys stand on his desk for a new perspective? This is what being a part of the art felt like. It is so fun to get a new perspective, and in this case, be inside the art.

My boyfriend and I went to the Flutter Experience in Los Angeles in March of 2020. It is advertised as a one-of-a-kind immersive experience. It was right at the beginning of covid so there was lots of hand sanitizer provided but we could touch all the exhibits. My favorite was the bathtub exhibit with a ton of rubber duckies and candles and the whole room was painted blue and felt like a bathroom. And you could get in the bathtub! We also got to lie on large pillows shaped like human figures, move large foam shapes around a wall, face paint with florescent paint, and run through a hall of light tubes.

I feel connected to the past when I stand in front of a Rodin sculpture or a Rembrandt or Picasso, however the immersive experience with art adds another dimension of art appreciation and to be honest it is fun! Another artist that does this immersive art experience well is the “dot artist” herself Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. I can’t wait for the Monet and Van Gogh Experiences!