Spaced out: radical environments of the psychedelic sixties

During the utopian 1960s, counterculture designers and architects, influenced by psychedelic drugs, created radical spaces such as womblike coves, isolation chambers, and brightly painted geodesic domes. Communes like Drop City and Morning Star redefined community through spontaneous building and dwelling. This book by Alastair Gordon brings together these ephemeral spaces with never-before-published photographs, detailing the spirit and ideas of the era.

Study at a glance

Abstract

The utopian sixties inspired revolutionary and alternative ways to live, love, and entertain--and equally radical spaces to do it in. Stimulated by the psychedelic drug culture, rebel designers and architects distorted space to create womblike coves and isolation chambers, forging a spatial vocabulary that still reverberates today. At the same time, the tune-in-turn-on-drop-out message lured youths into far-flung communes, often under the roofs of brightly painted geodesic domes draped and tie-dyed fabric. Idealistic and anarchic enclaves with names like Drop City and Morning Star redefined the concept of community, inventing a wildly spontaneous way of building and dwelling. For the first time, these ephemeral spaces are brought together in Spaced Out. The many never-before-published photographs and an inventive text by acclaimed author Alastair Gordon show in detail the spirit and ideas of this radical period.