If you’re going to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair

We all have that era in time we’d love to hop in a time machine and visit. Mine would undoubtedly be the 1960’s. If I had to pick a year of that decade? I think I’d have to go with 1967. 
The early to mid 60’s were grand with the shaggy hair do’s and mod suits but there’s something about the later years I find so fun and expressive. The 1960’s really came into its own when hair got longer, clothes got more flowing and the ideals of love, equality & freedom was growing rampant.

Much of the art and artists that have inspired my own style of work were flourishing during this time. Design duo Michael English and Nigel Waymouth, known as, Hapsash and the Coloured Coat had their iconic psychedelic posters knocking about all over London. 
Also in London was the 14 hour art event, Technicolour Dream. Headlined by Pink Floyd, this multi-media, multi-arts event celebrated art, music, dance and poetry.
Artist Marjike Kroger and her design collective The Fool were painting guitars for Cream and designing clothes for The Beatles. Which you can see them wearing in the I Am The Walrus segment of the film, Magical Mystery Tour and the All You Need is Love live world broadcast. 

The Beatles also released their iconic album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in ‘67, which was a total came changer in the albums department, kind of like when the Matrix came out in the late 90’s and every action movie after that had some resemblance of the Matrix. It was the same with Sg. Pepper’s, a bunch of bands and solo artists were inspired to make similar looking albums and use real life sound samples.
San Francisco hosted the now iconic Human Be-In concert, which is what kicked off the Summer of Love and Jimi Hendrix released his debut Are You Experienced?

It was far from a perfect decade what with wars, genocides, coos, crazy cults & assignations going on, but you can’t ignore the seeds for human equality and eco – consciousness that were planted by grassroot movements such as Freedom Riders, Black Panthers, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), National Organisation for Women(NOW), The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and Friends of the Earth (FoE) to name a few.
These grassroots movements of the 1960’s laid the foundation for many of the social, political, and environmental advancements we see today. Their legacy continues to influence contemporary movements, as activists draw on the strategies and successes of the past to address current and emerging issues. 

The 1960’s, with all its beauty, turbulence, and transformative spirit, still ripples through the art, culture, and ideals we cherish today and I could argue are being threatened in today’s political climate. 
We can’t step into a time machine, but we can carry the ideals the 1960’s wanted to bring into fruition forward, through the art we create, the communities we nurture, and the values we hold close.
 Equality, peace, love, creativity, these are not dusty outdated relics, they’re living threads we can continue to weave into the future.
 And perhaps now, more than ever, it’s time to imagine new directions. Something akin to a Solarpunk world, where innovation, sustainability, and community spirit guide us into brighter days.

But that’s a topic for another day…