Counterculture Movement

Life in the United States has not always been as tolerant as people know it as today. The 1960’s was a period of time which brought about radical changes for the country. Counterculture movements, such as the Civil Rights movement, the gay liberation movement and the feminist movement flooded the United States. These movements were intended to defy societal norms and create new perspectives on pre-established conventions. One of these movements, known as the Psychedelic Movement, was especially important in shaping the culture of the country, as well as that of the world. In 1965-1969, the exploration of psychedelics and hallucinogenic drugs positively affected the development of the United States by generating new perspectives on religion,
LSD, which is short for Lysergic acid diethylamide, is an example of a popular hallucinogenic drug. Research has shown that LSD leads to an “increase in brain activity, which causes the overactive imagination that many users report (Olsen).” Specifically, the increase in brain activity is caused by LSD’s ability to manipulate the chemical receptors, called serotonin receptors, in the frontal cortex of the brain. This region of the brain is responsible for controlling the human’s actions and impulses, and as a result, a hyperactive frontal cortex leads to hallucinations and “indescribable images and emotions (Olsen).” However, LSD “is also infamously known for its ‘bad trips’ which give some users feelings of panic, confusion, sadness, and scary images (Olsen).” Additionally, it is impossible to predict whether one will experience a ‘good trip’ or a ‘bad trip’. It can be concluded that most psychedelic drugs alters one’s senses and his or her ability to perceive
Because psychedelic drugs alter one’s vision, psychedelic drug users were able to visualize unprecedented colors and pictures. Wes Wilson, a renown poster designer from San Francisco, pioneered in new types of fonts. He tried to imitate what he saw on his psychedelic trips by making the letters seem as if they were “moving or melting (“Psychedelia and the Psychedelic Movement”).” Similarly, Victor Moscoso, a Victorian and Art Nouveau graphic designer, incorporated vivid colors and the illusion of moving images into his works as a result of using psychedelic drugs. He achieved this by “taking colors from the opposite end of the color wheel, each one having equal value and intensity (“Psychedelia and the Psychedelic Movement”).” Not only did artists achieve the concept of moving images by using bright colors, but also by incorporating geometric shapes and lines. This new form of art was known as Op Art, which is short for Optical Art. Furthermore, the development of the art style, Pop Art, was a direct result of the Psychedelic Movement. Pop Art had more of a psychological effect, instead of the physical, eye-appealing effects of the other new styles of art. It “attempted to break down the barriers between high (old-fashioned) art and contemporary culture (“Psychedelia and the Psychedelic Movement”).” In other words, Pop Art tried to undermine conservative and traditional thinking and