Kelsey Brookes — DMT
4-color serigraph on 160 lb Mohawk Superfine Ultra White Cover with high gloss spot UV as the 5th Layer and custom embossing. Straight cut, numbered, and signed by the artist.
24h x 18w inches
Edition of 50
The edition coincides with Brookes' Harmine print created in 2021. Harmine is one of two principal constituents in the South American psychoactive and entheogenic decoction known as Ayahuasca; DMT is the other. DMT is used as a recreational psychedelic drug and prepared by various cultures for ritual purposes as an entheogen. Says Brookes: The use of ayahuasca among [indigenous peoples of South America] is thought to represent a return to the origin of all things; the user experiences God directly—the creator of the universe and life. This experience provides direct evidence for their religious beliefs because they have experienced everything that underlies them. To them, everyday life is unreal, and what ayahuasca brings is real.
The print's imagery is rendered through the process of cutting up and sewing back together handmade Indian tapestries, which are then stretched over custom-shaped strainer bars to depict the sequence of a DMT molecular diagram. Upon converting this textile-born pattern into a serigraph print, Brookes has embossed the paper in strategic locations, creating a dynamic depth within the design. In this print, the artist carefully and intentionally plots out the structure of the DMT molecule, each atom and point of convergence between the chemical bonds serving as a focal point from which the presented image radiates. Colorful and vibrant—as with much of Brookes' work—DMT presents a complex composition that melds molecular mapping with meditative optics.
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