Genevieve 1960

Victor Mocoso was one of the most revered artists for 60s psychedelic rock and roll posters which in the ‘Summer of Love’, 1967 he became internationally known for these that also advertised venues regularly visited by famous musicians. These posters were brightly coloured and boldly patterned and often included a depiction of the advertised music artist or band. Many of the patterns and motifs were inspired by the early nineteenth century art movement, Art Nouveau (for Mocosco particularly Will Bradley, American 1900, and Granville, French 1840). The bright, vibrant colours used were a result of the influence of psychedelic drugs on the music industry during this period. He made 3- 4 posters a week for bands of the likes of Jerry Garcia, The Doors and The Beetles.

Within a year of his international acclaim for his psychedelic rock posters, Victor Mocosco was invited by Robert Crumb, a man who, “dropped acid and saw a new way of drawing comics--one that used the cute, familiar style of the Sunday funnies to mask subversive and sometimes frighteningly perverse messages and insights, many of them quite profound,” to become a part of Zap Comix production of which he played an important part in and once again received international attention for. Zap Comix were groundbreaking uncensored alternative underground commix (spelt ‘comix’ to differentiate them from popular ‘comics’) that reflected the social and political concerns of the 1960s such as mind altering drugs, sexual revolutions and satirised the establishment. The comix were printed on news print and were therefore cheap and widely available. They were sold at ‘head shops’ which also sold psychedelic posters and drug paraphernalia yet because drug paraphernalia was outlawed in America in the 1970s, the underground comix movement is considered to have ended by the 80s, despite the fact artists still produced them. Victor Mocoso still produces these and his posters to this day as well as album covers and t-shirt designs.