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» anima on Fri Mar 3, 2006 @ 3:25pm
Alex Grey (born November 29, 1953 in Columbus, Ohio) is an artist specializing in spiritual and psychedelic art that is sometimes associated with the New Age movement. His oeuvre spans a variety of forms including performance art, installation art, sculpture, and most significantly, painting. Grey is a member of the Integral Institute. He is also on the board of advisors for the Center for Cognitive Liberty and Ethics.Grey's paintings can be described as an unusual contemporary blend of sacred or visionary art and postmodern art; one term used to describe the artist's work is "transpersonal". His work often depicts aspects of the supernatural world overlayed with aspects of the natural world. Some viewers report that elevated or spiritual states are induced while viewing his images, which might be described as the traditional purpose of sacred art. His work has an eclecticism that often integrates auras, human anatomy, religious icons (sometimes reminiscent of thangkas), geometric shapes and tessellations (sometimes reminiscent of mandalas), in natural, industrial, and multicultural situations. The human figures are sometimes shown nude (usually with partially translucent skin), in sexual situations, or in the act of meditation. This incorporation of the "high" and "low", the sacred and secular, gives Grey's art a postmodern feel. However, the sacred aspect essentially expunges any sense of irony or insincerity often associated with postmodern art (one might cite some people's reactions to the art of Andy Warhol). This spiritual aspect provides an organization that enables Grey to overcome his eclecticism; his work may thus be characterized as syncretic.Grey has also made his own contribution to the philosophy of art in his book The Mission of Art (2001). Therein, he promotes the possibility of the mystical potential of art: he argues that the process of artistic creation can (and should) play a role in the enlightenment of the artist. For him, the process of artistic creation holds the potential of transcending the limitations of the mind and more fully expressing the divine spirit. He also believes that art can induce within the viewer an elevated state wherein spiritual states of being are attained.
