Sitting in complete darkness I closed my eyes and brought myself closer to the Dreamachine.
The potential hypnotic, hallucinatory effects that this machine promises is a huge expectation for its sitters, myself included. Of course, at the time when Brion Gysin manifested this machine his state of mind was more or less LSD- or hashish-induced. A poet, painter, performer, inventor, and thinker, Gysin collaborated closely with beat poet William S. Burroughs. Their tight friendship is evident in correspondence letters and openly shared in the exhibition Brion Gysin: Dream Machine. Gysin is one of the founding fathers of the Beat movement, and well respected for his endless experimentations with words and images, which eventually led to sound recordings as well. This man traveled greatly both in the physical and spiritual world, freeing himself to what has been taught, searching for the unknown.
As the yellow light continuously flickers on my face at 78 rpm, I cannot imagine what Brion Gysin saw, in my sober state, instead I heard sounds from some distant land. And shed a tear.
Brion Gysin: Dream Machine
at The New Museum until Oct. 3, 2010
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