Brion Gysin's Hallucinated Dreams at the Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris

The Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris (MAM) presents a major retrospective of Brion Gysin, the British-born artist, poet, and musician who bridged Surrealism and the Beat Generation. The exhibition, running from April 10 to July 12, 2026, explores Gysin's multifaceted career through seven thematic chapters: Dream, Travel, Permute, Write/Draw, Play, Bewitch, and Reveal. Gysin, born in 1916 in Taplow, UK, was a perpetual nonconformist who lived in Paris, Tangier, Venice, and New York. He invented the Dreamachine in 1958 with Ian Sommerville, a stroboscopic device meant to induce hallucinations. With William S. Burroughs, he developed the cut-up technique, influencing music, literature, and film. Gysin learned Japanese and Arabic calligraphy, blending them in his works. He was a close friend of Paul Bowles, Francis Bacon, Allen Ginsberg, and Mohamed Choukri. In 1973, he moved to 135 rue Saint-Martin, opposite the construction site of the Centre Pompidou, which he photographed obsessively. Gysin died on July 13, 1986, leaving over 400 works and archives to the City of Paris, which holds his moral rights. Curated by Olivier Weil and Hélène Leroy, the exhibition includes works by Gysin's friends and artists influenced by him.