Technicolor
As a result of being out of words to explain her euphoric state of mind with colors whilst experiencing LSD for an experiment of US army, a beauteous housewife of 1950s utters:
“I wish I could speak in Technicolor!”
When Elephants Come Marching In in de Appel, Amsterdam enquire into Psychedelia and Conceptualism of 60s and the influence on the contemporary culture. Works in the exhibition recall legendary names of the era in terms of art and music or colors with different forms reminiscent of a drug experience.
Melanie Bonajo’s video Night Soil: Fake Paradise (2014) in the exhibition is a perfect example of how contemporary culture can adapt the long tradition of shaman rituals. In the video, young people who experienced Ayahuasca – a hallucinogenic brew made out of various plants – are talking about their psychedelic journey: the realization of their inner selves – sexuality, freeing oneself from gender, identity and the roles in the society etc. – and, say, the corporeality of digitalization in our century – grounding two realities in both realms…
The icons of 21st century – the act of taking a selfie, the idiosyncratic sounds, tones of messages, skype, whatsapp – are perfectly narrated by merging with shaman rituals; the kitsch aesthetic is blend with nature. Bonajo’s video is a luscious experience with glitters, painted bodies with costumes in nature performing a ritual with an I-pad and a goat…
