Film Notes has published an essay by Mats Antonissen analyzing Henri Michaux's 1963 film "Images du monde visionnaire." The essay situates the film within Michaux's decade-long exploration of psychotropic substances, the history of pharmaceutical filmmaking, and postwar avant-garde cinema. This publication coincides with an exhibition at the Vandenhove Centre in Ghent dedicated to the film and related works, on view through May 2026.
The film represents a unique intersection of art, science, and corporate patronage. Commissioned by the pharmaceutical company Sandoz (now Novartis) and directed by Éric Duvivier, it was created as a pedagogical tool to visualize hallucinogenic states for medical professionals, yet was also screened in art cinemas. The article highlights the tension between Michaux's artistic ambition to capture the speed and force of his visions and the film's industrial, scientific context, framing it as a significant yet under-recognized artifact of experimental cinema and psychedelic research.