In 1955 the Franco-Belgian poet and visual artist Henri Michaux (1899–1984) tried the psychedelic drug mescaline, an experience that transformed his artistic life and provoked an outpouring of writings and distinctive drawings. Accompanying an exhibition at The Courtauld Gallery, this fascinating catalogue celebrates these unique drawings.

This catalogue and exhibition celebrate the unique Mescaline Drawings by the Franco-Belgian poet and visual artist Henri Michaux (1899–1984). In January 1955, as part of an experiment prompted by his publisher, Michaux, who was then 56 years old, tried the psychedelic drug mescaline, a product derived from the Mexican peyote cactus. The aim of the experiment was to investigate the effect of this type of non-addictive drug on the creative act. Michaux considered these experiences to be a portal into the inner workings of the mind.

The investigation transformed Michaux’s artistic life and provoked an outpouring of writings and distinctive drawings during the 1950s and 1960s, the latter being at the centre of this exhibition. Created after the effects of mescaline (and, at times, other drugs such as hashish, LSD and psilocybin) had passed, the drawings are the astonishing transcriptions of the artist’s sensation, rendered as if by a sort of shuddering seismograph. This display and the accompanying catalogue, which present works rarely seen in the UK, will showcase Michaux’s extraordinary experience, one that pushed the limits of what the essence of drawing is.