Contemplating Contemporary Art: Hip-hip Hooray for Hippie Modernism

Outside of BAMPFA

Hippie Modernism at the UC Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archival (BAMPFA) showcased a variety of artists that represented hippie counterculture and the historical events that occurred globally during the 60’s and 70’s. Hippies were members of liberal counterculture that advocated ideas such as a close relationship with nature, spirit, communal living, artistic experimentation, and recreational drugs. They were advocates for the environment and peacefully protested for equal rights during the fight for Civil Rights and for peace during the Vietnam War. Their counterculture aesthetic rarely has this kind of attention in history or even a gallery showcasing their contribution to their culture.

Lower floor of the gallery

On April 22^nd, the museum was free. Protestors marched the streets outside and people of all ages were walking around the neighborhood. For a busy Saturday evening, BAMPFA was not as crowded as expected. Overall the gallery was spacious. It was almost like a maze the way the different sections of the gallery space were broken up, especially on the lower floor with the split-level area that opens into another room. The show was split onto two levels because of the amount of work. There were two larger installations that people could go inside of. Those were placed into the center of the rooms, which utilized the large rooms well because a lot of the work were screen-printed posters and photographs that were hung on the walls alongside video and performance art displayed on flat screen TVs.

Corita Kent's silkscreen posters

The colorful array of psychedelic colors signature to the hippie aesthetic were utilized in a variety of forms in photography, print, sculpture, and installation. The signature poster style of Hippie culture was demonstrated by Corita Kent in her silkscreen anti-war posters that utilized text as well as incredibly vibrant neon colors next to more neutral yet still saturated colors.

USCO's two pieces with guard trying to sneak away

The installations were very engaging and immersive. However, some installations were weaker because of how intense the lighting is in the gallery. The flashing lights in USCO’s installations may have had a more powerful effect if it were in a room with dimmer lighting. Shiva (1965) was a massive painting with electric lights around the perimeter that would blink in a timely manner however, the red lights could only be seen if paying attention up close. When further away, the gallery lights wash out the red bulbs. Drop City’s The Ultimate Painting (1968/2011) digital print with strobe lights and a motor did not have that same problem because it was encapsulated in their dome titled 8-Fold “Polar Zonohedron” (1966/2011) made of painted wood, mylar, and composite panels.

Revisiting and reflecting upon the sociopolitical issues that we are still fighting today made Hippie Modernism a great contemporary show to see. Although it is questionable if the architecture of BAMPFA helped the show with the split-levels, but for what they had to work with, the gallery space was used up in a meaningful way that did not take too much attention away from the art. It was informative of the key movements and ideas in the art making of the time and brought to light a counterculture that does not get the recognition it deserves. Hippie Modernism is on display at BAMPFA until May 21, 2017.