A London art gallery was recently chastised for mocking mental health by selling souvenirs with blatant references to artist Vincent van Gogh and his turbulent life.
Many people throughout the world are familiar with the story of how van Gogh lost his left ear. The artist is said to have gotten into an argument with fellow artist Paul Gauguin, after which he cut off his own ear and became known as the 'tortured artist.'
The Courtauld Gallery in London was chastised for displaying van Gogh mementos, which included the famed self-portrait of the artist with a bandaged ear, among other works. The souvenirs were part of a show featuring some of the artist's most well-known works.
According to a CNN report, the gallery — which had picked socks, scarves, jigsaws, postcards, and print mementos of van Gogh's famous paintings as souvenirs — has now removed several items from its gift shop after being chastised on social media for being disrespectful.
It is understood that the gallery sent a statement to CNN acknowledging 'concerns raised about a small number of items available in The Courtauld Gallery’s shop and online store'.
'The Courtauld takes mental health extremely seriously. It was never The Courtauld’s intention to present an insensitive or dismissive attitude to this important subject by stocking these items,' the statement read, as mentioned in the report. 'The items in question form a small fraction of those made available as part of the exhibition collection. In light of these concerns, the items will no longer be sold in our stores,' it continued.
Previously, critics have attacked the gallery for attempting to exploit mental health by downplaying the artist's troubles throughout his lifetime, which ultimately led to his death by suicide at the age of 37 in 1890. A bar of soap branded as 'perfect for a suffering artist who appreciates fluffy bubbles' and a 'emotional first aid kit' marketed as 'a box of sensible emergency advise for 20 critical psychological circumstances' were among the items on sale.
Charles Thomson, the co-founder of Stuckist group of artists, was quoted as telling Daily Mail, 'Suicide is not a joke and mental illness is not a joke. This is shallow, nasty and insensitive. What next? Van Gogh’s suicide pistol?' Art critic David Lee, the editor of The Jackdaw magazine, was also quoted as saying, 'I can’t believe this isn’t someone in marketing’s attempt at tasteless humour in the pub after work. Would they, for example, be prepared to sell pencils in the shape of a false leg at a Frida Kahlo exhibition?' For context, Kahlo, a Mexican artist, had lost a leg to gangrene.
The exhibition 'Van Gogh. Self-portraits' is on display at the gallery until May 2022.