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About Psychedelic SF Gallery
Mission
At Psychedelic SF Art Gallery, our mission is to inspire and awaken creativity, imagination, and consciousness through the transformative power of visionary art. We strive to showcase the most captivating and thought-provoking works of visionary artists from around the world, with a focus on psychedelic and otherworldly themes. Our collection of posters, blotter art, original paintings and fine art prints are carefully curated to offer our customers a unique and unforgettable experience that celebrates the boundless potential of the human mind. We believe that visionary art has the ability to expand our awareness, challenge our beliefs, and connect us to something greater than ourselves, and we are dedicated to sharing this vision with our community.
Located in the vibrant Haight Street district of San Francisco, we strive to create an immersive and inspiring environment that fosters curiosity, creativity, and introspection. Our goal is to provide a platform for emerging and established artists alike to share their unique perspectives and contribute to the global conversation surrounding psychedelic culture. We are committed to supporting the growth and evolution of this dynamic art form, while also promoting awareness and understanding of its profound impact on the human psyche.
History
San Francisco Psychedelic Art Culture:
Celebrating the Transformative Power of Visionary Art Inspired by Psychedelic Experiences
San Francisco is renowned for being a hub of countercultural movements, and the psychedelic art culture that flourished in the city during the 1960s is no exception. Psychedelic art is a unique form of art that celebrates the transformative power of visionary experiences.
The psychedelic art movement in San Francisco emerged in the mid-1960s, as a part of the broader countercultural movement that sought to challenge the status quo and promote individual freedom and creativity. The art produced during this period was characterized by bright, vivid colors, intricate patterns, and otherworldly imagery that reflected the visionary experiences of the artists who created them.
One of the key figures of the San Francisco psychedelic art scene was Rick Griffin, who created the iconic "Flying Eyeball" poster for Jimi Hendrix in 1968. The poster, which features a psychedelic eye with wings, has become an enduring symbol of the era's psychedelic art movement. Other prominent artists in the scene included Stanley Mouse, Victor Moscoso, and Wes Wilson, who were known for their trippy, mind-bending artwork that captured the essence of the psychedelic experience.
The transformative power of visionary experiences was a central theme in the San Francisco psychedelic art culture. Many of the artists who created this art were inspired by the psychedelic experiences which they believed opened their minds to new realms of perception and consciousness. They saw their art as a way to capture and convey the powerful, transformative experiences they had undergone, and to share those experiences with others.
For many people in the countercultural movement, psychedelic art was more than just a form of artistic expression. It was a way to connect with a higher consciousness and to explore the deeper dimensions of the human experience. The vivid colors and otherworldly imagery of psychedelic art were seen as a means of accessing and expressing the mystical and spiritual aspects of life.
The San Francisco psychedelic art movement had a profound impact on the broader culture of the time, and its influence can still be seen in art and design today. The psychedelic aesthetic has been adopted by a wide range of artists and designers, from album covers to fashion to home decor. It continues to be a source of inspiration for people seeking to tap into the transformative power of visionary experiences.
In conclusion, the San Francisco psychedelic art culture of the 1960s was a unique and powerful expression of the transformative power of visionary experiences. The art produced during this period was characterized by bright, vivid colors, intricate patterns, and otherworldly imagery that reflected the psychedelic experiences of the artists who created it. The legacy of this movement continues to inspire artists and designers today, and serves as a reminder of the enduring power of art to challenge our perceptions and transform our consciousness.
Curator
Visionary Art Exchange was founded by Michael Acevedo in 2017 to showcase artists from around the world and give people an opportunity to own a piece of their vision. Highlighting the rich history and culture behind Visionary and Psychedelic Art. This lead to the opening of Psychedelic Art Gallery on 19 April 2022 Bicycle Day on Haight and Masonic Streets in San Francisco.
Michael moved to San Francisco from Miami in 1988. It was at this time that he attended his first concerts at the Fillmore where psychedelic rock art posters were at the center of the San Francisco music experience. Bay Area poster art of the 60s quickly became a fascination of his and his collection began to grow for there forward. He began attending the Rock Poster Society's annual gathering at the San Francisco Hall of Flowers where he got to meet many of the artists and see the original artwork. He began to meet other collectors and quickly found a niche in this genre of art. He began to collect rare and highly collectible vintage posters. Although this started as a hobby, it subsequently turned into a business venture, as his extensive knowledge attracted the interest of other collectors.
In the Spring of 1992, Michael was introduced to Alex Grey at an art gallery. The first painting he saw was Collective Vision, a vision Alex had of infinite onenes. The many faces of Collective Vision & united by the mandalic eye-field suggest both expansion of consciousness and sharing consciousness. Viewing this piece was a true turning point for Michael in his appreciation of paintings. Not only was the divine message clear to him, but the layers and depth that Alex was able to achieve with his brushwork really opened his mind to a whole new world of incredible art. He was then turned onto The Sacred Mirrors the Sacred Mirrors series of 21 paintings divides into three sections of body, mind, and spirit.
The entire progression of the series from Material World to Spiritual World visually describes a process of transformation from body awareness through sociopolitical awareness to spiritual awareness. Michael was blown away by the ability for these paintings to open you to seeing the truth of your own nature. He was fascinated by Alex’s ability to take visions from his minds eye and translate these visions from the interdimensional realm of the psyche onto a canvas. He so deeply related to these paintings, they gave him a window into his own psyche and allowed him the space to contemplate his own personal visions. Never before had art made more sense than at that moment. These complex and mind opening masterpieces spoke directly to his soul.
He purchased Fire walking and it was there that his spiritual journey truly began. Fire walking is an image of a man walking over hot coals with his spiritual energy aglow and his chakras connected with time, fate, and circumstance. He later purchased Transfiguration, a depiction of a man transcending the physical world and his flesh into the metaphysical world where his body is immersed in rainbow light and universal consciousness. Having the opportunity to live with these incredible pieces was a very evolutionary experience for Michael. He would often sit with these paintings, feeling the power of their sacred messages and allowing that incredible force of beauty help shape who he was as a human being. His life had been changed for the better through these paintings. He felt an overwhelming passion to want to share this art with everyone he could. This is where the seed was planted.
Over the course of the next 2 decades, Visionary Art would serve as important reminders of truth. These profoundly deep images allowed him the sacred space to do important inner work. As human beings, we all navigate places of both light and darkness. To be able to contemplate the journey of humanness as a whole being: mind, body, and spirit, allows for a deeper to connection to yourself and to all that is.
This ability for art to possess such a deeply healing and transformative experience inspired Michael to create Visionary Art Exchange where people can acquire high quality reproductions of these incredible masterpieces so that they too can feel the magic of these paintings. Because Michael is such a deep appreciator of every brush stoke, it was his desire to work with the most cutting edge technology in printing to bring through the best possible product so that the integrity and detail of these paintings lives on. As a collector, he wanted to ensure that these runs were small and that they not only retained their value, but grew thus each print is signed and numbered by the artist with certificates of authenticity accompanying them. Michael believes that Visionary Artists are leaving an important legacy that is a true gift to humankind a portal into the divine, that in turn allows us to see the divinity within ourselves. Seeing this truth and magic within allows us to open and to heal. This is where the work is done. After all, when you can heal yourself, that is the first step in healing the world.
