A Dream Deferred: Why I Created This Website

The Story of a website 50 years in the making.

As a child in the sixties, I was a “wannabe” hippie.  I say “wannabe” because, as a former Marine sergeant, my father would only permit me to have a crew cut haircut, I wouldn’t become a teenager until 1970, and I was too young to attend Woodstock or any other music festival, love-in, sit-in or protests against the war or pollution. But I did blast what my father’s generation would refer to as ‘long-haired hippie music’ in my bedroom while burning incense amongst brightly colored posters illuminated by a black light and a flashing strobe light. I didn’t do drugs (my parents did a good job of making me afraid of them) but I did immerse myself in a world of psychedelic sights and sounds.

Psychedelic music was in heavy rotation on my turntable- Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Strawberry Alarm Clock, Jefferson Airplane, and my favorite- Iron Butterfly. I spent hours inhaling sandalwood incense and listening to In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida set to a psychedelic light show trying in my own way to expand my consciousness.

When I went to college, I discovered an intellectual curiosity for art history (especially Dadaism and Surrealism), Existential Philosophy (Heidegger and Sartre), and philosophical novelists (Dostoevsky, Camus, Kesey, and Mailer). But I succumbed to the pragmatism that my parents instilled in me and graduated as a Finance major with a minor in Economics, preparing for a career on Wall Street- hippie dream deferred.

I guess I did sell-out, but I was able to live a comfortable life and while pursuing my passions on the side. I expanded into reading a variety of philosophical and literary styles and began to play guitar. Life was good.

I developed an interest in photography in high school. I remember using my plastic camera in an attempt to use creative perspectives (mostly close-up) and composition to turn everyday objects into surrealistic art. When I got the prints back from the developers every picture was an out-of-focus mess. Fixed focus lenses are not conducive to macro photography. Far from being discouraged, I started reading photography books and magazines and saved up to buy a 35mm Petri 7 rangefinder camera. My passion continued to grow, and I eventually purchased a Fujica ST-801 SLR on layaway with earnings from my after-school job as a busboy.

One afternoon, the movie Blow-Up introduced me to The Yardbirds with Jeff Beck and the glamorous world of fashion photography. My dream was to become the next Richard Avedon. While photography would continue to be a passion throughout my life, it would remain a hobby.

Now in my sixties and semi-retired I have concentrated my time more on music and photography. I set up a bedroom recording studio and started recording covers and original compositions of psychedelic guitar instrumentals (I cannot sing a note) and getting back in touch with my inner hippie (although I don’t have enough hair left to grow long).

Since reconnecting with my interest in the psychedelic aesthetic, I decided to focus my photography on psychedelic and surreal imagery. Having gotten excited about the results of my efforts, I decided to set up this web site to share my work with the world, discuss psychedelic art and artists with like-minded individuals, and maybe make a little beer money.