“Beyond Van Gogh” Is Highest Grossing Event in Wisconsin Center History

The “Beyond Van Gogh” experience is going well for the Wisconsin Center District. So well that the immersive exhibit, which started in July, has been extended again. It will now run through Jan. 9.

It’s the highest-grossing event in Wisconsin Center District history.

Nearly 150,000 people have taken in the exhibit, which features more than 300 projected works by the prolific Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh. Guests walk through a history exhibit on Van Gogh before stepping into a large room that features nearly 360-degree moving projections of his paintings synced to music.

“Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience has exceeded all expectations, and we are blown away by how Milwaukee has shown their support for the exhibit,” said Marty Brooks, president and CEO of the WCD in a statement. “With the holidays quickly approaching, the exhibit will serve as a premier destination for corporate parties, winter break activities and gifts for loved ones.”

It is the second time the convention center district, 400 W. Wisconsin Ave, has extended the show’s run. Before the exhibit opened the WCD had pre-sold approximately 53,000 tickets.

The experience takes between 45 minutes to one hour, with the immersive room offering approximately 30 minutes of material running on a continuous loop. There is no true start or finish, and guests can move around the room to take in the pieces from different angles.

Weekday prices start at $42.99 for adults with discounted rates for children, students, seniors and military members. Weekend prices start at $52.99. Group pricing is also available. Tickets are for a specific time to limit the number of people in attendance.

But starting Nov. 1 the experience will have new hours. It will be open Wednesday through Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Private group reservations are available.

The Beyond Van Gogh exhibit was designed by Montreal-based Normal Studio. It is one of at least five different traveling Van Gogh immersive experience exhibits that date back to 2011.

“The way Milwaukee has embraced Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience is incredible. I am thrilled to continue the momentum into 2022,” said Mathieu St-Arnaud, creative director and partner at Normal Studio. The company’s Van Gogh experience is also available in Detroit, Austin and Miami.

More information on tickets, special hours on holidays and COVID-19 practices is available on the Wisconsin Center exhibit website.

If you can’t get enough Van Gogh in your life, the nearest competing experience is in Chicago. The exhibit there has been so profitable that host property owner R2 Companies was able to sell the building that the exhibit fills the majority of for a 50% profit after just three years. R2 also has a growing number of property holdings in Milwaukee.

What was the prior highest-grossing event in Wisconsin Center District history? The district declined to identify the event because “sharing the event would be competitively disadvantageous.”

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