The Acid Trip, and other great works of art...

A friend and former roommate introduced me to a profound set of artwork a little over a year ago, which I will save for last in this segment. I'll go ahead and say now that I am not condoning the use of illegal drugs, nor do I participate in the act of using any myself. Hard to believe based on some of my blog entries, perhaps, but I would not lie about that. I would be willing to debate that without the use of certain substances, some of the 'finer' works of art would not exist, or at least they would not be quite as remarkable. Some of this is common knowledge, but still worth noting.

Vincent Van Gogh, perhaps one of the most familiar names in the history of art, was no stranger to Absinthe, an alcoholic drink that contains hallucinogens and has a history of worldwide bans and regulations. For more in-depth information on it, just check out the link. Here are some things to consider from what I've been told from others:

• A story was told to me by a friend that, in college, a suite-mate of his drank Absinthe, and after a short time seemed to be experiencing a very comfortable high. Comfortable enough that he appeared to be stroking a pillow on the couch he was on. He seemed rather content, so nobody intervened. He eventually passed out, and the next morning, when he woke up, he looked around the room and seemed rather confused. He then asked, "Where's the cat that was in here last night?" Enough said.
• To go along with the hallucinations, it has been said that your vision becomes blurred, and things begin to take on shades of green and blue. This will become relevant very shortly.

As tempting a concept it is to experience these things in a risk-free environment, I think I'll pass. I find it more entertaining to have the sober outside perspective in times like those. As for Van Gogh, it is speculated that a lot of his paintings were influenced by what he saw in his hallucinations, or even painted as he was actively having them. Take another look at 'Starry Night', 'Irises', 'Landscape with Olive Trees', or 'Starry Night over the Rhone' to see what I am talking about. You'll notice a ton of greens and blues being used, plus the wavy nature of these landscapes could imply his mind under the influence. Pretty astonishing when you think about it that way.

Starry Night

Irises

Landscape with Olive Trees

Starry Night over the Rhone

Pablo Picasso...was there any doubt? We've all seen art by this man. What most people don't know that his drug of choice was opium. This just happens to be one of the key ingredients in the production of heroin. So it's no surprise that Picasso's mind may not have been in the most clear state when he created his famous works.

"The smell of opium is the least stupid smell in the world." - Pablo Picasso

Not the 'least stupid' comment ever made, but here he is acknowledging his favor of the mind-altering substance. Although his drug abuse was quite evident, he was credited for beginning the Cubist movement and being a major influence/possible inventor of collages. This is not to take credit away from the man for his visions and accomplishments, but it is very likely you can credit opium for the majority of those visions. I know I do. Just see for yourself in 'Three Musicians', 'Guernica', and 'Dora Maar au Chat'. Many of his other paintings have an emphasis on nudism as well, so maybe opium got this guy riled up too. Either way, it's tough to deny the drug and the influence it had on his art.

Three Musicians

Guernica

Dora Maar au Chat

On to my favorite. The one that needs little introduction, but does require a link to view the pictures in the appropriate order at your own pace. I'll give you the quick synopsis. An artist was given an experimental dose of LSD and asked to continually sketch self-portraits as the effect of the drug took its course. When viewing the photos, stop to read the brief description to the right of each image. It gives you a timeline and a description of how he is acting. My eventual plan is to get a clear print-out of each one, and along the wall of a hallway in some future home of mine, I will present them in the appropriate order and label that hallway 'The Acid Trip'. Pretty good idea, huh? No? Well bite me. You're just jealous you didn't think of it. True Story. Enjoy...'The Acid Trip'.

Like I said, I don't use drugs. For those of you that do...maybe you missed your calling. Otherwise, get yourself a pencil, some paint and a canvas and get to work.

D.