Sometimes the suffering we go through for the sake of Art is completely self-induced.
Take Bryan Lewis Saunders, for example. The D.C.-based artist recently released a series of self-portraits each drawn through the lens of a different drug. The series — appropriately titled “Drugs” — includes 48 self portraits composed while Saunders was on everything from Crystalmeth and cocaine to DMT and Bath Salts. The experiment — which had Saunders taking a different drug everyday — left him “lethargic” and with “mild brain damage.” [Browse through a sample of Saunders’s work in the gallery above.]
And I thought leaning out of a helicopter was sort of on the edge.
Incredibly, Saunders claims that the experiment is on-going and that he plans to allow more time in between each session.
Sounds like a smart idea.
While this kind of over-the-edge mining for creativity may pay off for the painter, I have serious doubts that it could produce the same results for the photographer. Sadly (or fortunately, depending on how you factor mild brain damage into your risk/reward equation) the camera lens tends to act as a pretty strong filter for mind altering substances.
Or so I’ve been told.
Let it go on record that I am not advocating any of you to go out and repeat this journey for the sake of Photography. [But if you do, please send along the results.]
Number 4 is hysterical. 8 is over the cliff but very interesting.
Curious if any of the folks above who are now swearing off Chase Jarvis actually checked out the images…
Many of them carry a common element to most ‘psychedelic’ art that I find ho-hum… But the eyes of many of these are very intriguing. And a few of the pieces look as though they came from different artists altogether.
Condone what the artist did or not – doesn’t mean we can’t have a meaningful discussion about it. Shutting your mind to the subject matter because you don’t like it or disagree with it is no more noble than doing the aforementioned substances, thinking they will open your mind.
Thanks for sharing. I am sharing this with my photography group and looking forward to their take on this.
Slide no 8 is just supremely done, hatts off.
Thanks for sharing Chase. Don’t be too bothered with some of these negative reactions, I think the reactions will always be like that when you post something innovative, haters gonna hate. Then again, one may wonder if producing art under the influence of drugs is such a novel thing. Haters, I reckon you like Van Gogh right?