Henry Sorensen over at The Metabunker talks to Salon and Houdini creator Nick Bertozzi:
SØRENSEN: The act of immersing oneself – to the extent of losing oneself – in a work of art is given a very literal treatment in The Salon. It is tempting to read the blue absinthe as a metaphorical vehicle for the almost mystical connection that ensues between the reader and any given work of art. Where did the idea of this magical potion stem from?
BERTOZZI: I’m smart enough to realize I’ve got a good metaphor on my hands with the blue absinthe, but I can’t claim to have thought it out beforehand. I liked the idea of entering into favorite paintings and fooling around inside, and the absinthe was a convenient vehicle to get characters there. As I first began to think about the story I considered setting it up so that only Gauguin was entering into the paintings using the absinthe and there would be some doubt on the other characters’ side that Gauguin was really entering into the paintings or that it was just hallucinations brought on by the absinthe rotting his brain.
