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Furthur Bus Returns to SF: A Psychedelic Legacy
6 Sep
Summary
- Furthur bus, central to 1960s counterculture, is back in San Francisco.
- Exhibition features Jerry Garcia's never-before-seen BMW.
- The exhibit aims to connect people through art, music, and activism.
Ken Kesey's legendary psychedelic bus, 'Furthur,' once the vessel for a cross-country journey that defined America's 1960s counterculture, has returned to San Francisco. The bus is now the focal point of "Forever Grateful/Golden Gate Park," an exhibition at the County Fair Building in Golden Gate Park, celebrating the Grateful Dead's legacy and the city's hippie movement. This exhibition also includes Jerry Garcia's rarely seen BMW, which has remained in mint condition.
The Haight Street Art Center organized the exhibition, aiming to use art, music, and activism to bridge community divides. The 'Furthur' bus, purchased with proceeds from Kesey's novel 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest,' famously transported the Merry Band of Pranksters across the U.S. in 1964. Their journey, documented in Tom Wolfe's "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test," explored consciousness through art and mind-altering substances.
Interactive installations and performances are designed to immerse visitors in the counterculture experience. Actors from Third Rail Projects will guide attendees, who can share their personal connections to the Grateful Dead and the era. The exhibition also initiates a restoration effort for the now-dilapidated 'Furthur' bus, which was last publicly seen at Woodstock in 1969. The show runs through October 25.
