Continuing on from my CoP2 research project: “The Impact of Psychoactive Substances on Creative Culture”, I have chosen this CoP3 question as I feel it best suits my area of study and holds the most potential for investigating into this research subject further. I really enjoyed delving into this topic and personal interest of mine throughout CoP2, and feel this area of focus has enough scope for an in-depth and exciting body of work, necessary for Level 6. I plan on capitalising on the research and results I have already collated from CoP2 and explore/investigate further into the world of psychoactive substances, except for CoP3 I would like to narrow the scope of my research and focus specifically on psychedelic substances.
Within my practice I would like to inject further meaning into my work, creating visual artwork with substance in context, in the hope of engaging my audience on a deeper level and educating/conveying messages and current issues through interaction and experience, as well as concept and aesthetic. I hope to apply this to my CoP3 project whilst investigating into an area of research I am really interested in and excited about.
Science, laws and opinions are changing as society begins to see and accept the potential these substances could have in terms of medicine, productivity, the treatment for mental health issues, addiction, relationship issues, depression etc, and with this comes a shift in attitude towards their recreational use and possible impact on future creativity.
Research / subject area could also fall into the following questions:
Im interested to find out how psychedelic substances in particular - such as LSD, Psilocybin, Mescaline, Cannabis have been received, perceived, experienced and applied within creative culture and what impact these substances have had throughout history. I would like to investigate into their place within society as a whole and their extraordinary uses in varying cultures. I plan on analysing and researching into the truths vs social common misconceptions, challenge political propaganda, see if the 1960’s hippie culture and psychedelic imagery associated with this time have helped shape taboos and also how artwork inspired by “the psychedelic experience” has been received and accepted within creative culture and society.
Have psychedelic substances impacted our creativity? If so how? Why? And to what extent? How have laws and propaganda shaped social views and acceptance of these substances and their uses? How are these substances perceived in our society today and with the new emerging research and world views, are opinions changing and what does this mean for creative culture?
• What is Good? - To what extent does Social Responsibility impact on the role and function of Illustration? • To what extent do the individual politics of professional practitioner’s impact on the role and function of Illustration • To what extent does Aesthetic ‘Style’ reflect the context, audience and/or function of contemporary Illustration?
SUBJECTS Hippie Taboo How has the 1960’s hippie movement and the US “say no to drugs” war on drugs affected societies views of psychedelic substances? Has propaganda art / the psychedelic artwork of the time (album artwork, posters, acid tab art) aided misconceptions regarding these substances - how has this “constructed our views” of the truth? Law vs Science “Not just a rave drug” - With new research into the potential of these substances, how are societies view changing? Are we educated, interested and wanting to understand how we can benefit from these substances and what does this mean for the future? Have the harsh laws in place from the past 40 years damaged global progression? How? and in what areas? – Technology, science, medicine, art etc. The Psychedelic Experience How have psychedelic substances impacted society and creative culture throughout history (including music, writing, painting, dance, theatre, varying cultures, uses and religious groups etc). What does this mean for our creative culture today? What is acceptable / deemed as “good” art today - in relation to creativity inspired by the “psychedelic experience”? Is visual artwork created under the influence/inspired by the psychedelic experience seen as less valuable, less popular – why? Psychedelics and Creativity Are resent studies into the potential of these substances uncovering any links to enhanced creativity? How are people within society using these substances and for what? (Silicon Valley, Steve Jobs, etc). Are there any comparisons between creative practitioners who have taken psychedelic substances/ had a psychedelic experience and those who have not - i.e. subject matter, colour choice, application, deeper meaning etc? Creative Consciousness What is consciousness? What is creativity? Do psychedelic substances provide a link? – i.e. Rorschach tests. Are participants who have had experience with psychedelic substances more likely to see stranger/more imaginative imagery within these inkblot tests as opposed to these who have not? What does this mean in terms of consciousness, personality traits/conditions (which the Rorschach tests were used to discover) and creativity? Do psychedelics provide the gateway into our consciousness and if so – does this make us more creative?
QUOTES “Psychedelics are illegal not because a loving government is concerned that you may jump out of a third story window. Psychedelics are illegal because they dissolve opinion structures and culturally laid down models of behavior and information processing. They open you up to the possibility that everything you know is wrong.” – Terence McKenna “LSD is a psychedelic drug which occasionally causes psychotic behavior in people who have NOT taken it.” – Timothy Leary “It's a very salutary thing to realize that the rather dull universe in which most of us spend most of our time is not the only universe there is. I think it's healthy that people should have this experience.” – Aldous Huxley “The only way to write honestly about the scene is to be part of it. If there is one quick truism about psychedelic drugs, it is that anyone who tries to write about them without first-experience is a fool and a fraud.” – Hunter S. Thompson “To fathom hell or soar angelic, just take a pinch of psychedelic” – Dr. Humphry Osmond “Taking LSD was a profound experience, one of the most important things in my life. LSD shows you that there’s another side to the coin, and you can’t remember it when it wears off, but you know it. It reinforced my sense of what was important creating great things instead of making money, putting things back into the stream of history and of human consciousness as much as I could.” – Steve Jobs
BOOKS
WEBSITES
www.maps.org www.shroomery.org www.erowid.org www.bluelight.org www.dmt-nexus.me