Mind Meld 43 | LIVE from Third Eye Dropsia with Alexander Ward

Alexander Ward is a multidisciplinary visionary artist. His latest work, Ayahuasca Jungle Visions is a coloring book based on his journey (both physical and metaphysical) in the Peruvian rainforest.

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Alexander and I have been doing a number of live art streams on the Third Eye Drops Facebook page recently and we decided to have an experimental live rap session during one of them. It went swimmingly, so here it is, transmuted from a loose live riff session into the full-fledged mind meld. May it be imbued with all of the pomp, circumstance and cosmic sparkle motion that it deserves.

As for Alexander himself, he’s an artist who got his start in the gaming industry. But after a number of deeply impactful visionary initiations, his priorities shifted drastically. He began traveling extensively, even spending months on end in the Peruvian rainforest, where he participated in dozens of Ayahuasca ceremonies. Speaking of which, his latest project (which is just so god damn fun) is a coloring book called Ayahuasca Jungle Visions, a profound yet playful take on his journey (both physical and metaphysical) through Peru.

Musings in this mind meld –

• The story and inspiration behind Ayahuasca Jungle Visions
• Difficulty of remembering visionary states, how the story you tell yourself replaces the actual experience 
• Archetypical runes people see in visionary states
• Alexander’s time with the Shibipo people
• The power of “Icaros” and seeing sounds
• Our mutual love for manga and anime, how it influences Alexander’s art
• The dangers of the jungle
• Are the “beings” you encounter from inside you or outside, or both somehow?
• Tibetan book of the dead, psychedelic parallels 
• “70% is true, 30% illusion projected by your ego” – Shaman Alexander met
• Self-motivation and the Pomodoro technique
• Self motivation and the importance of community  
• Personally transformative visionary experiences Michael and Alexander have had
• Is digitally based art as powerful as traditional art
• VR