LUCTESA - The van Gogh museum Virtual Starry Night is among the most popular in Second Life. Since their opening on March 30th, thousands of visitors have come to see the famous Dutch painter’s sunflowers, self portraits and landscapes.

But the museum’s main attraction is its 3D-versions of some of van Gogh’s paintings. That means you can walk into his paintings like ”The Night Café” and ”The Bedroom” to a quite stunning effect. It’s as if van Gogh himself could enter the scene any second.

And now they’ve expanded and will continue to do so: The new museum building with better information boards and a brand new, huge 3D, opened today, next to the old one. Milan Brynner, concept director of the museum, is very proud of their latest: A version of ”Fishing Boats on the Beach at Saintes-Maries-De-La-Mer”.

”This is my favourite spot of the new area,” Brynner said. As you walk among the fishing boats, you hear the sound from waves and seagulls. The only thing missing is the salty scent from the sea. Not new, but a greatly improved 3D, is ”Bridge in the Rain” – one of van Gogh’s ”Japanese” paintings, inspired by Hiroshige.

Up on the roof of the new building is where you see ”Starry Night”, so residents should be sure to keep their  sun preferences on midnight. Brynner points across the landscape: "Behind what is there now is a big wall, a new 3D will be launched  next week: ’The Courtyard of the Hospital at Arles’.”

Also coming up in the museum: Drinks on the house in ”The Night Café”. ”Our scripter is working on that as well,” Brynner laughed.

Brynner and the rest of the team behind Virtual Starry Night are Dutch. That’s why, he admits, it’s difficult to say when their obsession with van Gogh began.

"You’re sort of raised with it. Everyone knows van Gogh. But his paintings, because of his use of colors and his techniques, were perfect to reproduce here in Second Life,” Brynner said, who simply calls van Gogh only by his first name, Vincent, or simply ”Vinnie.”

The museum also has a small exhibition with paintings of Paul Gauguin, who was a friend of van Gogh before they got into a huge quarrel.

"Vincent went home and cut his ear off. Gauguin took the train to Paris. They never met again.”

Brynner wouldn’t blame the ear incident on Gauguin, though. "Vinnie was a bit weird. He sent the ear to a prostitute he knew, saying she should carefully keep it. I don’t know if she did,” Brynner laughed.