Oversoul at Peoples Park

In the past two weeks, I have been fortunate to have a couple of father/son breakfasts on the town with my teenage son. I like to walk off the pounds go sightseeing after restaurant meals, so we walked a few laps around Kirkwood Avenue in Bloomington.

As soon as I stepped foot in Peoples Park, I saw the mural.

And exclaimed, "It's Alex Grey!"

My son was perplexed, so I had to share the story of my Alex Grey fascination.

Oversoul by Alex Grey
www.alexgrey.com

The painting is called Oversoul (pictured at right under limited use terms from AlexGrey.com). In the painting, a person envelops the world in a warm, geometric pattern. A diamond of light shines forth from the person's consciousness. Crazy.

The murals in Peoples Park are painted frequently by participants in Rhino's Youth Programs. According to the City of Bloomington website, kids have been painting these murals since 1995.

Incidentally, I discovered Alex Grey's artwork in 1995 as a new IU Bloomington student. I bought a poster from TIS when I was getting my college books; it depicted a transparent, meditating man. The copyright notice along the edge provided the artist and painting name (Theologue).

With a little AltaVista magic (or was it WebCrawler? Heh.), I found Alex Grey's website and was blown away by his intricate, spiritual style.

Since that discovery, I have spied on Alex's site from time to time. One of my favorite bands is Tool, so I was elated when Alex Grey teamed up with the band to produce art for their albums and concerts.

The music video for the song Parabola ends by transforming into an Alex Grey animation. To see Alex's art living and breathing is an experience I never tire of. I would love to visit the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors someday.

I really enjoy the history of art. Seeing one work of art influenced by (or paying homage to) another provides an opportunity to reexamine what I like about the original piece. I just learned today that Alex Grey's art was used by other bands prior to Tool. Plus, who wouldn't want to see an Oversoul tattoo?

As a paramedic, I understand Alex Grey's fascination with anatomy and mortality. Finding one of his works painted by kids, overlooking a peaceful but vibrant park, is a wonderful experience. The fact that it sparked a discussion with my son, and became a shared interest, is even better.