Nuclear Crucifixion

The artwork to be reviewed is a triad of works by the contemporary psychedelic artist, Alex Grey. His last name was a chosen name, Grey being the mediator between the stark contrast of white and black. This contrast looms as a theme behind much of his work, as he tries to bridge a gap between the spiritually lost and the spiritually saved. Here I will refer to three works by Grey to give a context to the art he produces and better understand the piece of art I found as horrific as I did significant. That art is titled Nuclear Crucifixion, and depicts a crucified Jesus Christ held up by the smoke of a mushroom cloud. An ominous nod to the threat of nuclear extinction that dawns again for humanity. The other pieces are titled Visionary Origin of Language, depicting a hominid speaking symbols into the air, and Acorn Dream, an electrified acorn with the picture of a mighty Oak within its small shell. These two paintings show a small extent of Alex Greys power using symbology. In Acorn Dream, you envision with the acorn the real possibility that such a small seed will sprout into such long trunks and leaves. Greater meaning can be extracted and applied from this painting to our own lives, where a small seed of our own can also grow into mighty trees, like our bodies or souls. In the Visionary Origin of Language, we see symbology of antiquity mixed with symbols of modernity. The painting is layered with psychedelic references that entice the psyche, of cracked skies and an animated spirit world of vibrations. In one hand, the hominid subject holds a pair of Psilocybin Zapotecorum, a species of mushrooms renown in Central and Southern America for its ceremonial psychedelic effects. Dancing atop the mushroom looks to be an unknown fiery entity, clinging to the ear of our subject as he looks starry eyed to the sky. Blue rivers flow like veins through his body, and his delicate finger points to a series of intricately simple symbols flowing from his mouth into open air. From the areas of chakra points, which is an eastern idea of points that represent our light body, we see a vortex coming from his throat, from his brow, and from his crown. Scattered throughout the sky are symbols from Egyptian culture; Hindu culture; Buddhist culture; Most of which represent the sacred of their theology. This piece of art can be dissected for an eternity, drenched in thoughtful emblems that represent an idea greater than basic understanding. This leads to the final, perhaps most thrilling piece I've come across in my twenty years of artful experience.

Nuclear Crucifixion is a loaded baked potato of an image. It’s simple, but with so much to take in. I will start with what I know about the biblical apocalypse and rapture. It is said that after the ascension of Jesus into Heaven, he is to come back down to Earth on judgment day to bring his followers into the afterlife before Hell breaks loose. The image shows Christ, in what i can infer to be his second coming, crucified within the iconic mushroom cloud of a nuclear bomb. To see his battered, tortured body - crucified on the same technology feared for almost a century to bring our judgement day - is a stomping of faith into the abyss of the human ego. In other words, it puts people en masse at the foot of God, condemned by the Promethean fire of technology to burn in it, no longer with it. For so long, humanity has lived in fear of the power of their Gods, but in our twenty first century, it is people who can now play God.

Technology was not the first to kill Christ, and technology did not flood humanity in the days of the Ark, nor was it the reason for the name of Christ to be used in the crusades, but technology may lead us to an impending apocalypse akin to an ancient covenant. Whether or not the Christian religion is correct in how they view the world, their theology provides excellent allegorical footwork for an understanding of our time. The advancement of technology has been a fear of the Church for as long as it allowed the discovery of truth (take evolution as an example), but that does not mean they were entirely unjustified in fearing it! In a time where our biology has become symbiotic with our tools of technology (to a point where extraterrestrials would consider a cellphone as part of our biology), it’s easy to see how the convenience and power brought to our mortal fingertips turn our hands into a mirror of the Gods. The stories of the past have become myths, and technology has become our savior. As advancements in AI bring human genius to the forefronts of intelligent creation, we all but dismiss the powers of a 'holy' God to give us our much needed guidance. The question now: Are humans MORALLY capable of possessing powers once reserved for the Gods? Alex Grey’s Nuclear Crucifixion is a visionary answer, a totem to the end of time. As a contemporary masterpiece, it challenges our tastes of technological luxury, convenience, and existence. Hopefully it can make us question our use of fire before we burn into its light.