To fully appreciate the current digital psychedelic movement, we must first revisit its roots in the 1960s. The original psychedelic design revolution emerged from a perfect storm of cultural, social, and artistic influences.

The 1960s were a time of profound social change and cultural upheaval. The Vietnam War, civil rights movements, and a growing disillusionment with mainstream society fueled a counterculture that sought alternative ways of thinking and perceiving the world. Psychedelic substances like LSD and psilocybin became catalysts for this shift in consciousness, inspiring artists to translate their altered perceptions into visual form. The late 1960s witnessed a cultural revolution that left an indelible mark on society and we do remember the Victoria and Albert Museum's 2016 exhibition "You Say You Want a Revolution?". Which focused on a period that saw the emergence of a counterculture that embraced mind-altering substances as catalysts for creative exploration across various artistic disciplines. Rooted in Beat Generation philosophy, this underground movement was fueled by a potent mix of drugs, music, and Eastern spirituality. Ventures like the infamous UFO Club, established by Joe Boyd and John "Hoppy" Hopkins, became hubs of multisensory experiences, combining innovative music with immersive light shows and avant-garde performances.

Artistic Influences

The 1960s also marked a period of intense political activism. May 1968 saw France teetering on the brink of revolution, with unrest spreading across Europe. Anti-Vietnam War protests erupted globally, while movements for civil rights, women's liberation, and LGBTQ+ equality gained momentum. The Black Panthers advocated for armed self-defence as urban poverty became a focal point of the civil rights struggle. Paradoxically, this era of social upheaval coincided with rising consumerism, often linked to patriotic sentiment.

Mush Balloons presented at Expo 1970 Osaka. Oki and Aoki. (Source: Japan World Exposition, Osaka 1970. Official photo album). Figure 33: Fuji Pavilion at Expo 1970 Osaka. Kawaguchi and Murata (Source: Japan World Exposition, Osaka 1970. Official photo album). Figure 34: Floating Theater at Expo 1970 Osaka. Kawaguchi and Murata (Source: Herzog).

World Expos in Montreal (1967) and Osaka (1970) showcased visions of a technology-driven future to millions of visitors. The proliferation of television brought the Vietnam War and moon landings into homes worldwide, offering for the first time real-time in the history of humanity glimpses of historic events happening across the world. While these technological advancements represented a modernist worldview, they also sparked disillusionment. This activism was underpinned by ideals of equitable resource distribution and knowledge sharing. Which seems to come in waves when we look at the history of Western culture at least. New environmental movement became breathing space, as evidenced by the establishment of Earth Day and Greenpeace in 1970.

Poster advertising an exhibition of works by Aubrey Beardsley, sponsored by the Arts Council, held at the Manchester City Art Gallery, 15-29 October 1966; Artwork after Aubrey Beardsley; Colour offset lithograph and letterpress.

The International Poetry Incarnation at London's Royal Albert Hall in June 1965, featuring Beat poets like Allen Ginsberg, forged crucial connections between emerging countercultural scenes in London and San Francisco. Art exhibitions on both sides of the Atlantic profoundly shaped the aesthetic of psychedelic culture. In London, an Aubrey Beardsley exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum became a nexus for the burgeoning psychedelic subculture. The works of Beardsley, William Blake, and others heavily influenced British psychedelic aesthetics. In California, a 1965 exhibition of German Jugendstil and Expressionist posters at the University of California and Pasadena Art Museum significantly impacted American psychedelic visual culture

The enduring impact of this era is evident in contemporary exhibitions like "Jugendstil – Made in Munich" at the Kunsthalle Munich (October 2024 - March 2025). This showcase highlights how the revolutionary spirit of Art Nouveau artists around 1900 resonates with modern concerns about sustainable living and social reform, demonstrating the lasting relevance of ideas born in times of rapid change and cultural upheaval.

Carl Strathmann; Head of the Medusa, circa 1897; Watercolor, India ink, 69.8 × 69.5cm. Münchner Stadtmuseum

Psychedelic artists of the 1960s drew inspiration from a diverse range of sources and so do creatives today. For example:

Art Nouveau: The flowing, organic forms and nature-inspired motifs of Art Nouveau resonated with the psychedelic aesthetic.
Symbolism: The dream-like imagery and hidden meanings of Symbolist art aligned with the introspective nature of psychedelic experiences.
William Blake: The visionary art of Blake, with its mystical and spiritual themes, provided a historical precedent for depicting altered states of consciousness. Romanticism ushered in a wave of artists who championed a more personal, emotive, and liberated perspective, in stark contrast to the rationalism of the Enlightenment and the mechanization of the Industrial Revolution1. This artistic movement emphasized subjectivity, imagination, and the power of nature, rejecting the strict order and logic of the preceding era. William Blake emerged as a pioneering figure in this new aesthetic.
Pre-Raphaelites: The rich colours and detailed compositions of Pre-Raphaelite art influenced artists' approach to visual storytelling.
Arthur Rackham: Rackham's fantastical illustrations inspired the whimsical and otherworldly elements in psychedelic design.
John Tenniel's Alice in Wonderland illustrations: The surreal and nonsensical aspects of Tenniel's work resonated with the psychedelic experience.

William Blake - The Ancient of Days, 1794. Relief etching with hand coloring, 30.8 x 24.8 cm. Fitzwilliam Museum. Image via Creative Commons.

Key Figures and Works

The psychedelic design movement was spearheaded by a group of innovative artists who pushed the boundaries of visual communication:

Wes Wilson. *Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band, Chocolate Watchband, The Great Pumpkin; Fillmore Auditorium, October 21-23, 1966*, 1966; SF Moma

Wes Wilson: Known for his flowing, liquid typography that often appeared to move on the page.
Victor Moscoso: Mastered the use of vibrating colors to create optical illusions and movement in static images.
Rick Griffin: Blended surf culture imagery with mystical and spiritual themes in his designs.
Stanley Mouse: Collaborated with Alton Kelley to create iconic rock posters and album covers.
Martin Sharp: Australian artist who brought psychedelic design to London's counterculture scene.
Hapshash and the Coloured Coat: Design duo known for their intricate, colorful posters for UFO Club events.
And what about Shepard Fairey’s murals?

The Digital Psychedelic Revolution

Fast forward to the present day, and we find ourselves in the midst of a new psychedelic revolution, one that leverages cutting-edge technology to create immersive, mind-altering experiences without the need for chemical substances.

Shepard Fairey. **Pittsburgh Murals and Public Art**

While the artists of the 1960s relied on ink, paint, and chemical inspiration, today's digital psychedelic artists create from a new set of tools:

Artificial Intelligence (AI): Machine learning algorithms can generate unique, often unpredictable psychedelic imagery. AI models like DeepDream and StyleGAN have been used to create surreal, dreamlike visuals that mimic the patterns and distortions associated with psychedelic experiences.
Augmented Reality (AR): AR technology allows artists to overlay digital elements onto the real world, creating interactive, immersive experiences that blur the line between reality and hallucination.

New Aesthetic Trends

AR Filters: For example filters transform faces and environments in real-time, offering users a digital approximation of altered perception.
Liquid Textures: Many creations feature surreal, liquid-like textures that seem to flow and morph, echoing the visual distortions associated with psychedelic experiences.
Iridescent Colors: Modern works often incorporate shimmering, colour-shifting effects that create a sense of movement and transformation.
Organic Forms: While leveraging futuristic technologies, the designs often incorporate organic, nature-inspired elements but otherworldly even obscure visuals, creating a bridge between the digital realm and the natural world.

Ines Alpha, aka Ines Marzat, is one of my all-time favourites that I have been following since the very start of her experimentation. Her visual language is unique, such as living masks and 3D make-up.

The digital psychedelic movement, while sharing many aesthetic qualities with its predecessors from the 1960s and even the late 1800s, has evolved in several key ways. Unlike the static illusions of movement in 1960s psychedelic art, today's digital creations can be truly dynamic, morphing and changing in real-time.

UFO Mark II poster for the UFO Club, by Hapshash and the Coloured Coat, 1967. The Pink Floyd Archives.

Extended reality (XR) technologies have introduced interactivity, allowing viewers to engage with and influence psychedelic artworks, resulting in a more immersive experience.

Personalization has reached new heights with AI-generated art, capable of tailoring unique psychedelic experiences to individual users based on their preferences or even biometric data. Furthermore, advanced rendering techniques have enabled digital artists to create hyper-realistic psychedelic effects that paradoxically appear more "real" than reality itself. These innovations have pushed the boundaries of psychedelic art, creating a new frontier where technology and altered perception intersect in ways previously unimaginable.

Immersive Experiences: Beyond Visual Art

The goal of both the 1960s psychedelic movement and today's digital psychedelia remains similar – to alter perception and provoke new ways of seeing. However, modern technology allows for fully immersive experiences that go beyond visual art:

VR technology enables the creation of entire psychedelic worlds that users can explore:

Isness-D: This VR experience, developed by researchers at the University of Sussex, has been shown to elicit responses similar to medium doses of LSD or psilocybin. Users report feelings of ego dissolution and connection with others.
Microdose VR: Created by Android Jones, this interactive VR experience allows users to create psychedelic art within a virtual space, blurring the lines between artist and artwork.

Digital technology allows for the creation of multi-sensory psychedelic experiences that blend visual, auditory, and even tactile elements. These technologies that have so extremely accelerated over the past couple of years alone have given momentum to fast art that feels psychedelic, even if it might not be a full trip. To name a few:

Synesthetic VR: Some VR experiences aim to recreate synesthesia, a neurological phenomenon often associated with psychedelic experiences where stimulation of one sensory pathway leads to involuntary experiences in another.
Audio-reactive Visuals: AI algorithms can generate real-time visuals that respond to music, creating a dynamic audio-visual experience reminiscent of psychedelic light shows.
Modern technology has made psychedelic art creation and experiences more accessible than ever.

AI Art Generators: Tools like Midjourney and DALL-E allow anyone to generate psychedelic-inspired artwork using text prompts.
AR Filters: Platforms like Instagram and Snapchat have made AR filters widely available, allowing users to experience and share psychedelic-like visual effects easily.
VR Headsets: As VR technology becomes more affordable and user-friendly, immersive psychedelic experiences are becoming accessible to a broader audience.

The psychedelic movement of the 1960s encouraged amateur participation in graphic design which has an increasing follow again these days, where we start to long for things that are reliably “real”:

Screen Printing: The accessibility of screen printing techniques allowed many individuals to create their own psychedelic posters and artwork.
Underground Press: DIY magazines and newspapers provided platforms for aspiring psychedelic artists to share their work. Now think of Doubleblind who continuously print their magazine covering important stories about psychedelic compounds, heritage, risks and harm reduction; and the Altered Scapes art zine, exploring art as a source of curiosity and awe to pair with psychedelics.

This trend feels increasingly more important as we relied on channels such as Instagram, as a community meticulously growing community and now see ourselves being shut down. Meta's recent crackdown on psychedelic-related accounts on Instagram has sent shockwaves through the community. Over the past few months, numerous individuals and organizations involved in psychedelic research, policy, and harm reduction have seen their accounts abruptly removed. This sweeping action has affected prominent groups like PsyAware, Breaking Convention, and The Psychedelic Society, as well as figures like Dennis Walker (aka Mycopreneur), Mikaela de la Myco among others. The purge appears to be driven by overzealous AI moderation tools, which fail to distinguish between illegal drug promotion and legitimate discussions about research, policy, and harm reduction. This heavy-handed approach has disrupted important societal conversations and hindered the dissemination of crucial healthcare information. In response, affected organizations and individuals are calling for Meta to revise its policies, implement human oversight in content moderation, and reinstate the removed accounts. The situation underscores the precarious position of psychedelic-focused entities on mainstream social media platforms and highlights the urgent need for more nuanced content moderation practices.

You can take action and sign an open letter to Meta via Psyaware here: https://www.psyaware.org/open-letter-meta

Ethical Considerations and Challenges

The rise of digital psychedelia also brings new ethical considerations and challenges:

Digital vs. Chemical Altered States
As digital experiences become more immersive and convincing, questions arise about the nature of consciousness and the value of technologically-induced altered states compared to those achieved through traditional psychedelics.
Data Privacy and Mental Health
The use of AI and AR in creating personalized psychedelic experiences raises concerns about data privacy and the potential for manipulation of users' mental states.
Addiction and Escapism
As digital psychedelic experiences become more accessible, there's a risk of users becoming addicted to these altered states or using them as a means of escaping real-world problems.
Authenticity and Commercialization
The commercialization of digital psychedelic experiences may lead to questions about authenticity and the potential dilution of the transformative power of true psychedelic experiences.

The Future of Digital Psychedelia

As technology continues to advance, the potential for even more immersive and transformative digital psychedelic experiences grows. Some potential future developments include:

Brain-Computer Interfaces:
Direct neural interfaces could allow for more precise and personalized psychedelic-like experiences.
Haptic Feedback:
Advanced haptic technology could introduce tactile elements to digital psychedelic experiences, further blurring the line between virtual and physical realities.
AI-Generated Psychedelic Substances:
AI could potentially be used to design new psychedelic compounds with specific effects, bridging the gap between digital and chemically altered states.
Collective Virtual Trips:
Advances in networking technology could enable large-scale shared psychedelic experiences in virtual spaces.

The fusion of AI, XR, and psychedelic compounds and aesthetics represents an unimaginable new chapter in the ongoing exploration of consciousness and perception. Artists are at the forefront of this digital psychedelic revolution, creating experiences that challenge our understanding of reality and push the boundaries of what's possible. As we continue to navigate this new frontier, it's clear that the spirit of the 1960s psychedelic movement lives on in today’s nuances.

The tools may have changed, but the goal remains the same: to expand our minds, challenge our perceptions, and explore the vast landscapes of human consciousness. Whether through chemical compounds or lines of code, the psychedelic journey continues, promising new insights, experiences, and transformations for generations to come.

Psychedelic Visions: From Art Nouveau to AI