Grateful Dead bus on exhibit in San Francisco
New York Post • • entertainment
Key Points:
- The psychedelic-painted bus Furthur, which carried Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters across America in 1964, has returned to San Francisco as the centerpiece of a new exhibition celebrating the Grateful Dead and the city's psychedelic culture.
- Furthur symbolizes a pivotal era when music, art, and experimentation around consciousness converged in San Francisco, with Kesey’s cross-country journey becoming a defining story of the psychedelic movement.
- The exhibition, titled “Forever Grateful/Golden Gate Park,” features immersive experiences including a liquid-light show, Grateful Dead photographs, psychedelic artwork, and Jerry Garcia’s BMW on public display for the first time.
- While the bus represents the 1960s psychedelic scene, the exhibit also acknowledges modern psychedelic interests such as ayahuasca and 5-MeO-DMT, connecting past and present explorations of altered consciousness.
- After years of deterioration on the Kesey family farm in Oregon, Furthur’s return marks the start of a restoration effort, positioning the bus to continue its cultural legacy.
