Phantasmaphile

October's Not Over!

I intended to write this post a few weeks ago, but that did not happen. October is always busy season for us witches, and this one is busier than ever with travels and projects. I am literally on an airplane as I write this, and it's the first free moment I've been able to snag all month. Not sure how long wi-fi will last up here, so I'm going to make these sky-words quick:

• My friend Shannon Taggart's book SEANCE is finally out from Fulgur, and it's a masterpiece. It contains 300 pages of her photographs of mediums, Spiritualists, and other liminal figures, plus essays by such otherworldly visionaries as Dan Aykroyd and Tony Oursler. This is a truly groundbreaking and gorgeous monograph, and it's a must-have for any occult art collection.
  
  
• MOMA will be showcasing several magical early prints by art legend Betye Saar, as well as her iconic assemblage work, Black Girl's Window, from Oct 21- Jan 4.
  
  
• The William Blake show up at Tate Britain looks tremendous, and I sincerely hope I can get to the UK before it closes on Feb 2.
  
  
• The new Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance series on Netflix may be the most exquisite show I have ever seen (and the making-of documentary is astounding as well). Very excited to see this exhibition of puppets and character designs currently at the Museum of Moving Image, up through Feb 23.
  
  
• Like the rest of my magic pals, very into the AMC show Lodge 49, which is about a secret society in California, and is rife with alchemical references. We're still making our way through season 1 though so NO SPOILERS.
  
  
• Music: the new Chelsea Wolfe album, Birth of Violence, might be my very favorite of hers. It's more mellow and melodic than her last few, but perhaps even heavier from a content-perspective as it deals with the shadow-side of the divine feminine. Utterly beautiful. Also loving Derek Schmidt's Major Arcana album of shimmering tarot songs, and eagerly anticipating the new FKA twigs album (the videos have been stunning so far).
  
  
• I should have mentioned: the reason I am on an airplane again is because my book tour heads to California right now. I've got 5 juicy events in the SF and LA areas, some ticketed, so free. Please do join me if you're near.
  
  
• I'm also very honored to have been featured in this New York Times profile, as well as to have received some extremely kind words about my book in the Times Literary Supplement.
  
  
• The Witch Wave season 3 launches on Oct 30, just in time for Halloween. I've got some astoundingly stellar guests lined up, so do make sure you're subscribed in whatever podcasting platform you prefer.

I'm sure I'm forgetting things, but I blame it on the altitude. Here's hoping you also fly high for Samhain, and that all of your witches come true!

May Marvels

Leonora Carrington "Green Tea (La Dame Ovale)" 1943

Well, you can probably guess that I'm going to be crowing about my book again, because it comes out in just a few weeks on June 4th! I've got a whole bunch of events coming up in support of that, a few of which I'll be mentioning below. But you can see them all listed here, and you can sign up for my newsletter here to make sure you don't miss any.

In the meantime, however, there's a whole bunch of other spectacular stuff happening this month, too. So here we go!

• Leonora Carrington: The Story of the Last Egg will be in NYC at Gallery Wendi Norris (off site) on May 23 - June 29. It will feature several of her works, as well as a reading of her unpublished play Opus Siniestrus: The Story of the Last Egg, and a symposium to boot. I'm giddy with anticipation!
  
  
• On the topic of surrealist faves, there is currently a show up called Surrealism in Mexico at NYC's Di Donna Gallery. Works by Carrington, Frida Kahlo, and my #1, Remedios Varo, are among those included. I need to make sure I see it before it closes on June 28.
  
  
• And I could not be more excited for my friend Amy Hale's book on surrealist art magicienne, Ithell Colquhoun, which was just announced.
  
  
• Some of you know I love Kansas City and get there with relative frequency to visit one of my dearest pals. Hoping I can get there soon, as there is a Saya Woolfalk exhibition at the Nelson-Atkins Museum up through Sept 1, and a Ralph Steadman retrospective up next month at the Kansas City Public Library.
  
  
• Speaking of Steadman, he's been on my mind lately because he did the poster art for Taylor Mac's GARY on Broadway, which is such an astoundingly brilliant show. I almost feel like the less you know about it the better, but let's just say it's a meditation on the purpose of art in challenging times. (And no, you don't have to be familiar with Titus Andronicus beforehand, so don't fret). See it.
  
  
• Occult poet and pal, Janaka Stucky, is currently on tour, and we caught his NYC ritual performance this weekend. Again, don't want to give to much away, but he is dazzling and unmissable, and you should absolutely catch him, particularly if one of his full-scale events in partnership with Atlas Obscura comes your way. Was very honored to write the forward for his sublime new book, Ascend Ascend, which is out now.
  
  
• On that note, thrilled to be doing an event with him this Saturday, May 18th in Philly. We'll be at BloodMilk's performance venue, Sphinx & Snakeskin, doing readings from our books and then having some juicy discussion afterward. Tickets here.
  
  
• OK, since we're talking events, here's a whole slew of NYC events of mine happening next month, so you can mark your calendars:

  Tues, JUNE 4, McNally Jackson Books (Williamsburg location), 7pm, FREE: 
  Official book release event in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (please note there are several locations of this bookstore, so make sure this is the one you turn up to!) I’ll be moderating a discussion with 3 of my favorite witchly writers, Dorothea Lasky, Kristen J. Sollee, & Mya Spalter. More details here.

  Thurs, JUNE 13, Catland Books, 7pm, FREE:
  I’ll be in conversation with Spolia Tarot creators Jessa Crispin & Jen May (each an amazing writer/artist in their own right) at Bushwick, Brooklyn's occult shop. Link coming soon, but it will be a juicy conversation about magic, feminism, and tarot.

  Thurs, JUNE 20, The Wing (Flatiron location) 6:30pm, FREE (Members Only): 
  If you are a member of The Wing, or you know someone who is that can bring you, I'll be interviewed about witchery & feminism by the brilliant Dianca London Potts. 

  Fri, JUNE 21, The Strand Bookstore, 7pm, $15: 
  This is a BIGGIE. I’ll be at the one-and-only Strand in Manhattan giving a presentation on witches and how my book came about. This will be a magnificent Summer Solstice event & when you buy your tix, you’ll also have the option of adding a reading with a magical divination expert as well. Magic will be in the air! More info and tickets available here.

  Thurs, JUNE 27, Barbes, 7:30pm, FREE (donation to musicians encouraged):
  I’m very honored that the musicians of The Bushwick Book Club will be performing songs that they’ve written based on my book. I'll do a short reading, but this will mainly be a music show, and I'll be hearing the songs for the first time myself that night. Barbes is a legendary bar and music venue in Park Slope, Brooklyn, so this should be a really special one!

• And while you've got that pen out, jot down the dates of Oct 4 - 6 for the next Occult Humanities Conference at NYU! So happy to be co-organizing this again with my brother-in-bewitchment, Jesse Bransford. Schedule and tix on sale soon, but as you can see the lineup is pretty tasty if I do say so myself.
  
  
• The new FKA Twigs video for Cellophane is one of the most gorgeous things I've seen in a while (and reminds me quite a bit of my favorite Aeon Flux episode, Isthmus Crypticus).
  
  
• Charming Disaster's darkly delightful new album, Spells + Rituals, comes out on June 7th.
  
  
• I'm obsessed with Lisa Hanawalt's new adult animated series, Tuca & Bertie. It has that quality of demented joy I can't get enough of.
  
  
• Maleficent is *technically* a malevolent fairy, but I was still happy to get my witch on and watch the new trailer for Maleficent: Mistress of Evil.

That's all for now. Hope your May is off to a magical start!

March Magic

Agnes Pelton "Day" 1935

Hello, and happy new moon, happy almost-spring, happy March. Lots going on as ever, so this may be a quicker one than usual. Here goes:

• I have long been an Agnes Pelton fan, so I'm thrilled this undersung magico-morphic painter is finally getting her due! A retrospective of her work, Agnes Pelton, Desert Transcendentalist opens at the Phoenix Art Museum on March 9th and will be up through September 8th. If you've been losing your mind over the Guggenheim's Hilma af Klint show, then I think you'll want to plug into this one, too. Though Pelton was working many decades later than af Klint, I see them in a similar light as visionary women and spiritual, abstract (or at least quasi-abstract) painters who were so far ahead of their time. I wrote a little something about my love for Pelton for In Wild Air a while back, and I can't wait to see this show in person when I'm in AZ next month.
  
  
• The SPRING/BREAK art show is now happening here in NYC, and there are two exhibitions in particular that look amazing. Court of the Dryad is curated by The Sphinx Northeast, and features Phantasmaphile favorite Max Razdow as well as Aaron Spangler and Kyle Staver. Spiritual Art Advisory is curated by Sarah Potter and Caroline Larsen and features "a selection of artwork based on the archetypes of the Tarot's Major Arcana." The show is up through March 11th and this year is located at 866 UN Plaza.
  
  
• On a personal note, tickets for my Remedios Varo presentation Bruja with a Brush at Hauser & Wirth NY on March 20th are available here. The talk is free, but you must RSVP at that link. It's being presented by Morbid Anatomy and will also include a bunch of snaps I took at the Varo exhibition that I visited in Mexico City earlier this year. I'm very excited to discuss the occult influences on my favorite painter's work, and I hope you'll join me.
  
  
• I also have a new Wonder Woman essay up at Moleskine's The Fold. It explores the feminist (and super transgressive) roots of the Wonder Woman character, and celebrates female liberation and sexual freedom. 
  
  
• I'd be remiss if I didn't remind you that my podcast The Witch Wave has been happily expanding, and we've had some incredible guests on of late, including CIRCE author Madeline Miller, Erica Feldmann of HausWitch (and author of HausMagick), Witchery author Juliet Diaz, Strange Frequencies author Peter Bebergal, and the above-mentioned curator and Color Magic expert Sarah Potter. And the episodes coming up are pretty dang mind-blowing if I say so myself. Have a listen here or on Apple Podcasts / Spotify / Stitcher (and as ever, if you're interested in sponsoring an episode or several, drop me an email or DM).
  
  
• Janaka Stucky is one of my favorite poets and performers of all time, so I was beyond honored to get to write the intro to his gorgeous new book-length poem, Ascend Ascend. It comes out on April 23rd, and Janaka will be touring all over the country to recite it with his signature incantatory rituals. Go see him live if you can, TRUST ME.
  
  
• I really dug the animated film, Ruben Brandt, Collector. Super stylish and inventive and contained so many of my favorite things: Surrealism! Art heists! Jungian dream analysis! Three-eyed faces! Highly recommended.
  
  
• I was way too spooked to watch Hereditary, which I heard was amazing, but very excited for Ari Aster's follow-up, Midsommar. Parallels to The Wickerman are obvious, but I love anything with a whiff of folktastical Pagan Revivalism, so sign me up.
  
  
• Heavy music rotation of late includes the newest albums by Dizzy Fae, Twin Temple, Neko Case, Leikeli47, and everything by SALES (but especially their perfect EP).

I know there's so much more to mention, but that's all I've got time for today. Hope you're all sparkling and well.

February Rebirth

     

Some of you know how precious the Remedios Varo painting "Nacer de Nuevo" has been to me since I was a teenager. I've waxed ecstatic about it many times over in various places, so I'll just say once more that this piece has affected me in profound ways, and is one of the skeleton keys to my psyche. So you can imagine how meaningful it was for me to get to view a never-before-displayed preliminary sketch for it at the "Adictos a Remedios Varo" exhibition at Mexico City's Museo de Arte Moderno last month. The show overall was astounding, and filled with many of her paintings, drawings, and sketches, let alone photographs, beloved objects from her personal collection, and books from her library. But seeing this one little drawing in particular was a highlight. A reminder that a humble idea can turn into a fully-fleshed out work, and once in a while, a masterpiece.

It was also amazing timing, as I was doing my final edits on my book while I was there, and just so happened to be putting finishing touches on my art witch chapter, which has a ton of Varo and Leonora Carrington in it. While it wasn't easy having to write on what was supposed to be a vacation / research trip, I can think of no better place to finish that chapter than in the very city where these image sorceresses lived. 

Anyhow, it's been far too long since I've posted here. Writing this book has been more difficult and time-consuming and emotionally challenging than I imagined. And yet it is now, finally DONE. I know it will never be perfect, but I can let myself say that I am really really proud of it, and put so much heart and work into it, and I hope very much that you will enjoy reading it. I received galleys last week, and it's wild and wonderful to hold it in my hands. If you, too, would like to read "Waking the Witch: Reflections on Women, Magic, and Power," it will be out on June 4, 2019, and it is available for pre-order now. Pre-orders are a huge help, so I thank you for considering doing so. But regardless, I hope that if and whenever you do read it, you find something in it which stirs and sparks you. 

With that personal preamble out of the way, onto some delectable, fantastical bits and bobs:

• Remedios Varo's book of collected texts, "Letters, Dreams, and Other Writings," in out from Wakefield Press, finally! So worth the wait, and full of tiny treasures.
  
  
• In more Varo news, I've been enjoying the new Vessel album "Queen of Golden Dogs," which not only has a Varo painting as its cover, but a song is dedicated to her as well.
  
  
• On a related note, on March 20th I'll be giving an illustrated lecture called "Remedios Varo: Bruja with a Brush" for Morbid Anatomy at NYC's Hauser & Wirth gallery. More details soon.
  
  
• I also write about Rider-Waite (or "Smith-Waite" as it's now rightly called) tarot illustrator, Pamela Colman Smith, in my book. So you can imagine I am very excited to see the "Pamela Colman Smith: Life and Work" exhibition up now at Pratt Institute through April 4th. (You have the new "Pamela Colman Smith: The Untold Story" book already, yes? It is huge and chock full of images and info.)
  
  
• The Tate Modern will be hosting a Dorothea Tanning retrospective from February 27th through June 9th, and it will have 100 of her works - the first of such exhibitions in 25 years. I am hoping so very much I'll be able to see it. (I realize I say that every time something tremendous like this happens in the UK, but I am always sincere.)
  
  
• There will be an Alejandro Jodorowsky retrospective at NYC's El Museo del Barrio from February 28th through May 12th. It will include "an array of visual, literary, archival, and filmic material drawn largely from the artist’s personal archives," and there will be screenings and events including tarot readings from the man himself.  EDIT: I just learned this exhibition was cancelled. Apologies!
  
  
• Two spellbinding books: the "SPELLBOUND" catalog from the Ashmolean's witchcraft exhibition of the same name, and Fatima Ronquillo's new monograph as well.
  
  
• Who doesn't want to watch a short film of Kenneth Anger swanning around Chateau Marmont, directed by Floria Sigismondi?
  
  
• I know there's far more than this going on, but I must leave now this Houston hotel room where I'm currently staying and begin my day. Still swooning over yesterday's visits to the Rothko Chapel and Menil Collection, two places I've dreamed about visiting for years. They are very strict about photos, so here's that Tilda Swinton / Tim Walker shoot at both locations to help you visualize.

Pre-fall Preternature

Alison Blickle 2018

It's been quite a summer. It took me to Missouri, Maine, and Minnesota, as well as some lovely trips to upstate New York to get some research and writing done for my book. Speaking of which: I handed in the first draft to my editor last week (eek!), so now enjoying a very small intermission before I dive back in for edits and rewrites. It's been an intense process, but I'm getting excited to share the results with you next year. More on that front soon!

In the meantime, there is so much magical stuff happening over the next month and beyond. Here are some of the things that are currently making me sigh and swoon:

• Alison Blickle's new show The Myth of Inanna opens at Kravets Wehby Gallery on Sept 6th and is up through Oct 13th. I've loved her hyper-patterned occult starlets for years, and can't wait to see this series, which is loosely based on stories about the Sumerian goddess.
  
  
• SPELLBOUND: Magic, Ritual, and Witchcraft is up now at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, and I am hoping beyond hope that I'll be able to see it in person before it closes on January 6th. It has over eight centuries of magical artifacts on display, and is getting rave reviews already.
  
  
• Long-overlooked surrealist, Gertrude Abercrombie, is finally getting her due, courtesy of a nearly 70 piece retrospective up now at Karma. There will also be a related monograph being released in October. 
   
• Sun Worship and Solar Machines is a group show about sun magic which is up now at Boston's Assemblage, FPAC at Envoy Hotel through Oct 6th. It's curated by Kari Adelaide and Max Razdow, and features work by some of my favorite artists such as Jesse Bransford and David Shaw. Furthermore, my favorite playwright, Matthew Freeman, is writing a short piece for the show, which will be performed on Saturday, Sept 16th at 2pm. 
  
  
• Photographer Frances F. Denny's new show of portraits, Major Arcana: Witches in America will be up at ClampArt from Oct 4th through Nov 24th. I'm very honored to have been included in this series, and to have sat for such a gifted photographer (and I'm also truly dazzled by the company I'm in.) 
  
  
• Julie Heffernan's new show, Hunter Gatherer, is up now through Oct 6th at PPOW. It contains her signature festooned self-portraits, this time commenting on the proliferation of imagery that fills our conscious and unconscious minds. Looks magnificent per usual.
  
  
• Thrilled to see that another of my favorite lady surrealists is getting more love: Leonor Fini: Theatre of Desire 1930-1990 will be up at NYC's Museum of Sex from Sept 28 through Mar 4th. It is being billed as "the first American museum survey" of her work, and will feature paintings, illustrations, costume designs and more.     
  
  
• So happy Harry Potter: A History of Magic will be coming to the states. It will be up at the New York Historical Society from Oct 5 through Jan 27. Per the show description, it: "combines century—old treasures including rare books, manuscripts, and magical objects from the collections of the British Library and New-York Historical Society—with original material from Harry Potter publisher Scholastic and J.K. Rowling’s own archives."
  
  
• I'm also thrilled that magical-realist film about Zambian witch camps, I AM NOT A WITCH, is finally opening this month in the US. And I'm even more thrilled that I'll be hosting a screening of it at Alamo Yonkers with Mitch Horowitz on Sunday, Sept 16th at 7:30pm. We'll be having a short conversation about contemporary witch hunts after the screening as well. Tickets available soon, so watch this space! here now!
  
  
• In further personal news, I really enjoyed being a guest on Jason Louv's Ultraculture podcast recently. We got into a really great discussion about witchcraft and gender, so I hope you dig listening to it as much as I dug doing it.
  
  
• Sabat Magazine's major arcana deck, Le Tarot de L’étoile Cachée is available now. I wrote the guidebook for it and the unbelievably talented Elisa Seitzinger did the art. It is even more shiny (literally!) and beautiful than I imagined. 
  
  And here are a few more things to obsess about:
  
  
• Sweet and magic-infused new cartoon Summer Camp Island. The counselors are witches!
  
  
• Anna Calvi's glorious and gender-bending new album, Hunter
  
  
• My brilliant brother-in-law David Freeman's hilarious new podcast about ghost lore, The Most Haunted Boys in School
  
  
• My favorite writers and performers of uncanny cabaret, Charming Disaster, have a Kickstarter up for their new album, SPELLS + RITUALS, with lots of juicy perks!
  
  
• The latest trailer for Luca Guadagnino's SUSPIRIA is so gorgeous and terrifying and TILDA TILDA TILDA. And Thom Yorke's new song, Suspirium, from his soundtrack is streaming now. He also was quoted as saying that writing the score was "a form of making spells." Welcome to the club, Thom!

Ravishing Roundup

John DiLorenzo "...So He Went Forth" 

It has been far too long since I've posted here, and for that I'm truly sorry. Life has taken a rather exciting but all-encompassing turn for me, as I've begun the transition into making my witchery my full-time vocation. I've been busy working on my podcast, The Witch Wave, writing my first full-length book (more news on that soon!), and getting up to all sorts of other supernatural shenanigans. I'm trying to resist turning this blog into too much of a self-promotion machine, so the best way to hear about my latest happenings is by receiving my newsletter. I only send 1-2 update emails a month, so please do sign up here if you want to be sure not to miss anything.

With that out of the way, there's a ton of Phantasmaphilic art magix occurring right now. Here's a big old list of what's been exciting me of late:

• John DiLorenzo's show "NIGHTFALL" at OVO Gallery in South Orange, NJ. Opening is Feb 2nd from 7-10pm, and the show is up from Feb 3rd - Feb 25th. 
• "The World Bewitch'd: Visions of Witchcraft from the Cornell Collections" is up through Aug 31st. It features selections from Cornell's incredible Witchcraft Collection, and I can't wait to get back there to see this.
• Iris Van Herpen is one of my favorite designers, so it's exciting to see her get the schmancy museum treatment. The "Transforming Fashion" exhibition has been traveling around, and I hope I can catch it when it's at the Phoenix Art Museum, Feb 24th through May 13th. (They're also planning a 2019 retrospective of another one of my faves, the visionary painter, Agnes Pelton, and I CANNOT WAIT. [I recently wrote about my love for her here, FYI.])
• Bowie is coming to Brooklyn. March 2nd - July 15th. Need I say more?
• "Women Who Fly: Goddesses, Witches, Mystics, and other Airborne Females" by Serinity Young is coming out from Oxford University Press on Feb 1st. She was our closing night speaker at the last Occult Humanities Conference, and if her book is anything like the presentation, I'm expecting loads of inspiring images of wonderful winged women.
• "Leonora and Alejandro: La Maga y El Maestro," an epic new theatrical dance piece based on Leonora Carrington and Alejandro Jodorowsky's creative partnership is coming soon from the visionaries at Double Edge Theatre. Its world premiere is happening in March at Montclair, NJ's Peak Performances, and I've already got my tickets. Counting the days.
• Damien Echols has a new solo exhibition called "High Magick" up at Last Rites Gallery here in NYC. You can view his talismanic works through Feb 17th.
• Sabrina the Teenage Witch is coming to Netflix, and will star the tremendous Kiernan Shipka AKA Mad Men's surly spirit animal, Sally Draper. It will be based on Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and Robert Hack's fantastic current comics reboot, "The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina." And as with Riverdale, Aguirre-Sacasa will be creating the show as well.
• Speaking of, I'm sure you already know that Netflix will also be doing the series, "The Dark Crystal: The Age of Resistance," in 2019. But I'm mentioning it again because I'm so so happy about it.
• I got tickets to see Astrid Hadad, "The Lady Gaga of Nixtamal," perform at the Met Museum, and I am giddy as hell.
• Dior's Spring 2018 Couture collection is based on Leonor Fini (with a sprinkle of Pamela Colman Smith tarot imagery for good measure), and it's taking my breath away.
• And of course, RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 3 debuted last night. I should say "it gave me life" like the kids do, but in all honesty it was so good it gave me life, death, and reincarnation as a multi-breasted burlesque goddess of mirth. (Also if you haven't listened to Ru talking to Oprah already, you must remedy this immediately.)
• OK, fine, maybe just two little me mentions. I adored this profile that just came out in the Observer - one of the few to talk about my witchly work holistically, and I'm so grateful. And I was also over at VICE yesterday, as a guest on Sarah Lyons' delightful tarot show. We talked witches, divination, and the SUPER BLUE BLOOD FULL MOON (!!!) coming up next week. You can watch it over on Broadly's Facebook page here.

Alrighty. Plenty more where that came from, but hopefully that will help keep the magix flowing for you for now. Thanks a million for your patience and your presence. I appreciate it more than you know. <3

The Occult Humanities Conference is this weekend!

The third Occult Humanities Conference at NYU is nearly here and is SOLD OUT. However, PLEASE NOTE that the vending area, gallery exhibition of Tin Can Forest’s work, Saturday night evening performance by Alunaré, and Sunday evening closing reception are all FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC on Saturday the 14th and Sunday the 15th, per the posted schedule on the website. Looking forward to seeing you there! 

Eclipse News

I hope this note finds you feeling hopeful. Darkness can be unsettling, but it's so often a source of wisdom and vast potential. Let's make sure this American Eclipse kicks off a new chapter of change, courage, and radical curiosity.

How can we contribute to building a world that is equitable and just? How can we use the power of our imaginations to more fully engage and transform? How can we learn more about ourselves and each other, and use our collective power to create more love, more art, and more beauty? (Here's a good place to start). These are the questions I'm mulling over. I hope you'll join me.

On that note, there's lots of news to share with you, so I'll jump right in:

THIRD TIME'S A CHARM

The third Occult Humanities Conference at NYU will be taking place on October 13-15, 2017. It is once again co-organized by Jesse Bransford and myself, and this year is shaping up to be the most magical yet. Full details are here, with even more to come. Tickets for the weekend are available here, so do be sure to get yours soon, as they will sell fast.

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APPEARANCES & APPARITIONS

On Friday, September 1 at 7pm, I’ll be participating in the “Witch as Muse” panel discussion at the Seligmann Center in Sugarloaf, NY, alongside Sarah Potter, Kristen Sollée, and Cody Rounds. This is in conjunction with the “Season of the Witch” exhibition up now, which will be on view that evening. More info here.

On Thursday, October 5th at 6pm (New Zealand time), I’ll be participating remotely in “Night of the Witch” at City Gallery Wellington in honor of their “Occulture: The Dark Arts” exhibition. I’m going to be doing an illustrated reading of “What Is A Witch” and then a conversation and Q&A about art and witchcraft. More info here.

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SPELLCASTS FOR PODCASTS

I was honored to be a featured guest on the fabulist, feminist Stories of Strange Woman podcast. I had so much fun with this conversation, and it is quite extensive thanks to the great questions from twin hosts Tracy Hurley Martin and Tonya Hurley. Listen to the episode here.

And I’m grateful to The Wytch Files for doing an entire episode on “What Is A Witch,” complete with a stellar review and some annotations and other additional research. Listen to it here.

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BOOK, BOOK, AND CANDLE

A reminder that I wrote the forward to “Literary Witches” by Taisia Kitaiskaia with illustrations by Katy Horan. It’s out on October 10th, but you can pre-order this gorgeous book here.

And I’m thrilled to be featured in Kristen Sollée’s “Witches, Sluts, Feminists: Conjuring the Sex Positive,” available now.

(OK, no actual candle news to speak of, but do be sure to check out my friends Mithras Candle online or in person at the Occult Humanities Conference if you’re in need of further illumination!)

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SHE’S SUCH A SHAMELESS WITCH

Lastly, a reminder that “What Is A Witch,” by me and Tin Can Forest is available for purchase here, and in many fine shops across the globe.

And my WitchEmoji sticker app for iPhone messaging is available here to charm your mobile coven.

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Thank you for your continued support of my wyrd work. It truly means the world.

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Spiritualism & Art Symposium in Lily Dale

Your favorite spirit photographer and mine, Shannon Taggart, has curated an incredible-looking symposium on Spiritualism and art. It will be taking place on Friday, July 28th in Lily Dale, NY AKA the world's mecca for Spiritualism. Sounds like Heaven on Earth. Here are the full details:

The Science of Things Spiritual:
Seven Illustrated Presentations
Assembly Hall, 9am – 6pm

Spiritualism & the Arts:
An Evening of Music, Movies, & Mediumship
Lily Dale Auditorium, 8pm

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–>  PRE-PAY $60 FOR BOTH EVENTS HERE 

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Other options include:
Single Lecture: $15 at the door
Morning Session: $30 at the door
Afternoon Session: $40 at the door
Evening event: $15 at the door

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–>  Learn About Lily Dale   

–> Gate Fee Info

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9:00 am – Spiritualism: A Timeline, with Malcolm Cobley, award-winning filmmaker and multi-media producer
An illustrated presentation that traces the story of Spiritualism from the dawn of human history to the present day; in context with the evolution that was taking place concurrently in the areas of science, technology, religion and unprecedented social change.

10:00 am – Ancient Mediumship: Oracles in Antiquity, with Leonard George, Ph.D., author and Professor of Psychology at Capilano University, North Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Spiritualism arose in the mid-19th century, but attempts to contact a spiritual realm date back to remote antiquity. This presentation will survey the various sorts of oracles in the ancient Mediterranean world, and consider how they resembled and differed from mediums today.

11:00 am – Architectural Spirits in Lily Dale, with Steve Bass
Architect Steve Bass, whose specialties include classical architecture and sacred geometry, examines and analyzes Lily Dale’s unique Victorian architecture. This discussion reveals surprising facts about the structure of the town, and also explains why Lily Dale, New York is one of the most unique communities in America.

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Break – 12:30 – 2pm

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2:00 pm – Harmonies Heard & Unheard:  An Exploration of Mediumistic Music, with Marjorie Roth, Ph.D., Professor of Music History and Studio Flute at Nazareth College in Rochester, NY
An exploration of the sources of musical inspiration and what it means to receive music “from Spirit”.  This talk will begin with the philosophical underpinnings of music from Antiquity and end by considering the experiences of two inspired composers, one now in Spirit herself. Topics covered will include Boethius, Rosemary Brown, and the Music of the Spheres.

3:00 pm – Spiritualism and Gender in the 19th Century, with Cristina Zaccarini, PhD., Associate Professor, Co-Director of Asian Studies, Adelphi University
This presentation will discuss the ways that gender impacted contact with spirits in the 19th century United States. It will explore how men and women, due to differing cultural precepts regarding loss and mourning, were drawn to the world of spirit, as well as the ways that women could carve out power through mediumship.

4:00 pm – Spiritualism and the Mystery of Modern Art, with Massimo Introvigne, Managing Director of the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR)
A significant number of artists believed that their hands were actually guided by the spirits of the deceased or various supernatural beings. Both the academia and the media often censored these relations between modern art and esotericism. This presentation will show examples of Spiritualist artists who played a crucial role in the very birth of modern art, a history that is almost unknown to the general public.

5:00 pm – A History of Parapsychology, with George P. Hansen, author of The Trickster and the Paranormal
The scientific investigation of psychic phenomena will be discussed—from the rise of Spiritualism in 1848, to the founding of the Society for Psychical Research in 1882, to laboratory experiments and the U.S. government’s psychic spying program of the 1970s and 1980s. Examples of research will be presented, including some from Hansen’s own work.  The future of parapsychology will also be addressed.

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EVENING EVENT – 8:00PM @ Lily Dale Auditorium

Spiritualism & the Arts: An Evening of Music, Movies, & Mediumship

Join us for musical performances, short films, and a live spirit art experiment!

Tribeca Film Festival director and creator of The Midnight Archive Ronni Thomas screens a series of short films on the topics of Spiritualism, parapsychology, and dream research.

Broadway composer/performer Doug Skinner presents a live program drawn from his rare archive of music attributed to fairies and aliens, music collected from séances and channeling, fairy tunes from Scotland and Norway, and the channeled piano music of the English medium Rosemary Brown.

Mediums Susan Barnes and Lauren Thibodeau, aka “The Psychic Professors”, collaborate on a unique message service that combines clairvoyant mediumship and the creation of spirit art.

Learn More

• July 28, 2017
• • Lily Dale Assembly
• Go to event page

 

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So! Many! Things!

I usually try to avoid list posts, but there is so much to tell you and I'm sheepishly behind on blogging, so here's a heap of wonder for you today:

• Was very honored to get to write the forward for Literary Witches, written by Taisia Kitaiskaia and illustrated by friend and art mage, Katy Horan. It's out in October (natch), and available for pre-order. Having a sneak peak at it, I can tell you it is ridiculously beautiful through and through. Please support these gifted ghouls.
• Also thrilled to be included in friend and occasional collaborator Kristen Sollee's badass book, Witches, Sluts, Feminists: Conjuring the Sex Positive. It's a sharp and insightful survey about the relationship between witches and women's issues, and it's a fire-starter indeed.
• Catland, Brooklyn's main occult bookshop and event space, could really use your love and money. Please support them, and keep this kind and crucial community thriving.
• My giant-hearted, hare-brained pal, Sara Benincasa, is raising $500K for refugees and also to get Neil Gaiman to read the Cheesecake Factory menu in its entirety. Both are excellent causes and you can support them in one fell swoop here.
• My beloved dude, Matthew Freeman, has a new performance art/theatre piece opening tomorrow night, and it is unmissable. "This Is Normal" provides a time to sit in (sorely needed) silent contemplation with your fellow humans and think about who we all actually are. It's part of the "This Is Not Normal" festival at Williamsburg's legendary Brick Theater. Three shows only: Thu June 15 @ 9pm, Sat June 24 @ 2pm, Wed June 28 @ 7pm. Tickets and info here.
• SAVE THE DATE for the Occult Humanities Conference on Oct 13-15 at NYU, co-organized per usual by myself and my left hand man, Jesse Bransford. More details very soon.

JOY! MADNESS! MAGIC!

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"Beg the Raven" Studio Sale Tomorrow!

Well this is exciting. Some of my very favorite artists are getting together tomorrow and selling their work for less than $100 per piece. Here are the details:

Beg the Raven

Beg the Raven is a one day, pop-up studio sale at 56 Bogart, Brooklyn (L train to Morgan Avenue, in Bushwick). Each artist will present a number of works including paintings, drawings, sculpture, photographs and artist books — all at a range of affordable prices less than $100.

56 Bogart St., Lower Level
(Corner of Harrison and Bogart)
Brooklyn, NY

Saturday May 27th, 3-8 PM

Alessandro Keegan
Bob Szantyr
Elisa Soliven
Jaqueline Cedar
Jennifer Sullivan
JJ Manford
Jon Lutz
Elizabeth Insogna
Max Razdow
Vanessa Albury

http://www.thesphinxnyc.com/beg-the-raven/
https://www.facebook.com/events/446633135692512/

For further information, contact: [email protected]

Sounds dreamy. Do pop by!

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Tonight: Digital Witchcraft Panel at The Alchemist’s Kitchen

Very excited to be participating in this panel on Digital Witchcraft at The Alchemist's Kitchen. It starts at 7:30pm, and tickets are available online or at the door. More details:

Join OcCulture Talks this month as we bring witches of Web 2.0 into the physical space to talk witchcraft, social media and community building.

We’ll be chatting with women across the community about how they connect, leverage the digital space, and launch web-based businesses that deal in the occult.

Joining us are:
Pam Grossman - the force behind Phantasmaphile and What is a Witch, who recently released the best selling WitchEmoji pack

Lindsay Mack - Tarot reader of Wild Soul Healing and tarot instructor know for her focus on healing through tarot

Jeanna Kadlec - astrologer and tarot reader with a focus on working with businesses.

We’ll hold a roundtable discussion with these powerful women, and open our conversation to a Q&A afterward.

Join us for a slice of digital craft IRL!

$15 advance
$20 at the door

 Looking forward to seeing you there!

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MoCCA Fest this weekend!

Becky Cloonan

One of my favorite annual happenings is MoCCA Arts Fest, NYC's biggest indie comics celebration. Thrilled to be appearing there this weekend on behalf of Tin Can Forest. I'll be happy to sign copies of What Is A Witch for you. Come visit at table D 152!  Details:

The MoCCA Arts Festival will take place April 1 - 2nd from 11:00am - 6:00pm at the luxurious and modern Metropolitan West located on West 46th Street between 11th and 12th Avenues. Mere steps from the Hudson River Greenway and the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, MoCCA's host venue will encompass two floors of exhibitor tables, a gallery of original art showcasing the work of special guests, and pop-up cafés throughout the space.

Price of admission is $5 per day and will grant attendees access to the Fest including the Exhibitors Hall, on-site Gallery space, and programming. Tickets will be available for purchase at the door. Children under ten are free.

More info here

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"Witches" show in Hudson!

Rosy Keyser "Terrestrial Mime"

"Witches" is a delectable group show that just opened at SEPTEMBER Gallery in Hudson, NY.  It features five artists - including none other than red queen herself, Cameron - who explore the archetype of the dark feminine through their work, whether via subject matter or creative technique.  As an added bonus, I'll be doing a short version of my "Witch Pictures" talk there on April 22nd at 6pm as part of an evening of celebratory performances.

Full show details, and a stunning essay written by the always brilliant Susan L. Aberth, below:

WITCHES

March 18, 2017 → May 07, 2017

Opening Saturday, March 18, 2017, 6–8pm

Performances Saturday, April 22, 6pm

Anna Betbeze

Cameron

Rosy Keyser

Laurel Sparks

Marianne Vitale

Witches, by Susan Aberth

Witches, an exhibition at SEPTEMBER, presents five artists whose working processes and artwork either directly employs or indirectly suggests magical intentions. The term “witch” has always stood for feminine subversive forces, acting either outside of or in opposition to the oppressive rules of patriarchy. Furthermore, an integral part of witchcraft entails the creation of specially charged objects meant to facilitate magical objectives, such as the rectification of injustices, protection from harm, or the expansion of consciousness. The construction of such objects involves intense focus, repetition, and a certain channeling of outside forces (unconscious and/or supernatural) that directly mirrors art making in general. Surprising to most people is that humor is a powerful tool harnessed into magical service and the artists here deploy it with skill and subtlety. On view from March 18 through May 7, 2017, Witches will present a culminating a series of performances on April 22 in tandem with the theme of the exhibition.

Marjorie Cameron (1922-1995), the great American artist, poet and occultist, serves as the presiding muse of the show with four extraordinary works on paper. Hermit displays one of her signature androgynous figures (often self-portraits) enveloped in a robe constructed of masterful watercolor washes and is reminiscent of the Hermit Tarot card of the major arcana. An untitled pencil drawing reveals the faint silhouette of a woman’s lower torso; while in her womb grows a twisted and strange entity. This haunting and sinister drawing is especially interesting in light of Cameron’s ritual sex magic practices and her desire to create a supernatural “moonchild” in the tradition of Aleister Crowley’s teachings (a pivotal figure in her and her husband Jack Parson’s occult development). Two abstract ink drawings titled Pluto Transiting the Twelfth House represent planetary orbits and their expressively intertwined lines suggest astrological cycles and their consequences. Cameron has been the focus of great art world attention with a series of significant recent exhibitions and it is a great treat to see them here lighting the way with their numinous energy for the other four artists.

Interested in the occult, but not in its organized and more conventional aspects, Anna Betbeze is instead drawn to the harnessing of psychic energies and potentialities. Working with found and second-hand materials such as rugs and furs, the artist adorns her pieces with stains, rips and burnt-out holes. Like decommissioned magic carpets that bear the scars of adventurous travel, they possess a mesmerizingly ruinous beauty. The power of repulsion/attraction is at work here, as well as certain types of artist spellcraft – think of Antonin Artaud’s burnt, folded and bloodstained spells made imprisoned in a mental asylum and meant to kill Nazis. The works have a humorous edge as well, acknowledging how dysfunctional and absurd we can be, especially regarding our bodies and their desires. Talismanic fragments of a deconstructed whole, her works drape and hang with bruised sensitivity, stubbornly maintaining their emotional and social charge. Depending on where and how they are installed, they provoke different types of encounters, but always is the basic and perplexing question – what are these things?

Laurel Sparks openly presents her work as combines of magical materials and ritual practice. Her series of Magic Square constructions take as their inspiration the ancient custom of creating grids where all numbers running across, down and diagonally add up to the same number. But this is just one aspect of these multifaceted pieces, for Sparks purposefully overlays different kinds of esoteric systems in order to create her own brand of Sigil magic. Sigils refer to occult signs used to summon change based on the practitioners will and in these works she calligraphically inscribes the surface with a variety of hermetic texts that become all the more powerful in their unreadable density. Orchestrating a dizzying array of color, directional markings, and magical intentionalities, the artist strives to open a portal between visible and invisible dimensions. Sparks calls this her own form of an “alchemical wedding,” referring to the mystical conjoining of opposites such as water and fire, night and day, active and passive. Her surfaces mix traditional art materials with magical ones such as salt and selenite, and then go on to incorporate detritus from her life like dirt, fragments of gifts and a variety of “craft” materials (beads, pipe cleaners, plastic flowers) that also reference a queer aesthetic of artifice. Taken altogether the works have an archetypal resonance and function as “vibrational transmitters,” or in other words they are living entities meant to interfere with and influence their surroundings.

Another artist whose work disrupts traditional readings of the grid is Rosy Keyser. In works like Terrestrial Mime (2105), a wooden framework resembling the stretcher bars of a canvas are used as scaffolding for an assemblage of distressed and painted fabric. Raw and wild, the form possesses anthropomorphic qualities, further suggested through a visceral application of paint. They also instigate a host of Pagan associations, such as abject shelters found in the forest or the messy remnants of strange ritual activities undertaken by groups in seclusion. Keyser’s work can act as a provocation to see what happens when we let go of normative systems of measuring and logic. Vulnerable and broken, they nevertheless exude an uncanny alternate energy operating outside of the seen world. Art, like magic, doesn’t work in isolation - even alone in the woods many other forces are at play. Tellingly the artist holds that, on occasion, we all must avail ourselves of the dark in order to see the light.

Practitioners of witchcraft at times incorporate elements of play into their ritual work, invoking the liminal and fluid atmosphere of childhood. Nursery rhymes, jokes, songs, drums, rattling toys and games, anything that employs repetition can be used to raise energetic fields or induce trance states. Marianne Vitale’s floor sculpture, Very Fine Gander (2017) is like those old-fashioned paddleball toys meant to be played while running or skipping across the yard. Impossibly large and grounded, it still brings a smile, even though the cute birds are now scorched and blackened in an alarming manner. One thinks back to those primal urges often connected to child’s play and children’s toys, urges that result in mysterious dismemberments, melting, and other forms of “innocent” destruction. Just as inanimate objects are brought to life and infused with magic when used in play, when burnt and charred they can function as dark talismans of the Burning Times of the Middle Ages. Vitale’s wall assemblages, constructed from pictures disrespectfully torn from books, shuffle time periods and upend aesthetic expectations. Mappings of the artists’ psychic terrain, they can lead the unsuspecting viewer to treasure or traps, another instance of the dangerous and pleasurable transgressions of play.

At this critical juncture in American politics, the use of supernatural forces to fight the restrictive, repressive and draconian threat of the religious right seems both appropriate and urgently needed.

Susan L. Aberth is Associate Professor of Art History at Bard College. Her specialties are Latin American art, Surrealism and occultism. She has written numerous articles and essays on these topics, including Leonora Carrington: Surrealism, Alchemy and Art (Lund Humphries: 2004).

For more information about the artists and works, please contact [email protected].

NYC Art Week Highlights Part 2!

A few more fantastic items of note for your big apple art ingestion this week. (Once again, all text below images taken direct from press releases):

FICTIVE UNIVERSE GROUP SHOW at SPRING/BREAK:

Lorenzo De Los Angeles

Fictive Universe at SPRING/BREAK Art Show
Curated by Kari Adelaide + Max Razdow, Room 2317
Heidi Lau, Ann Lislegaard, Lorenzo De Los Angeles, Jeremy Olson, Max Razdow + Jamie Zigelbaum

This exhibition aims to use science fiction as a launching ground for investigations of the ineffable. The sculptures of Heidi Lau have been described as modes of being and growth formations that allow for survival but on a marvelously fragile basis, and Lorenzo De Los Angeles' drawings likewise use a mechanism of layering lines and symbol to envision a tenuous possibility of being. Jeremy Olson's paintings and miniature sculptures develop a halting future space which is a portal into the tactility of self and the unknowable. Max Razdow and Jamie Zigelbaum's collaborative science fiction novella "I We" dissolves individuation and uses the future as a metaphor for the lushness of potential incarnate experience. Ann Lislegaard's sculpture "The Flower From Weena," depicting a future artifact out of H.G. Wells' The Time Machine, presents the stretch of future-vision in a singular concrete form.

4 Times Square (enter on 43rd Street between 6th and 7th Ave)
Preview Day: February 28
11am — 5 pm Collector’s Preview
3 pm — 5 pm Press Conference & Preview
5 pm — 9 pm Vernissage Opening (opening reception guest pass required at
http://www.springbreakartshow.com/visit/ )

Daily hours: March 1-6, 11am-6pm

 

SCOTT TRELEAVEN AT INDEPENDENT NEW YORK:

INVISIBLE-EXPORTS
at
INDEPENDENT NEW YORK

Anne Doran
Scott Treleaven

March 2-5, 2017

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SPRING STUDIOS
50 Varick Street
New York, NY 10013

 

PRIVATE VIEWING
Thursday March 2
12–8 PM 
(by invitation only)

 

PUBLIC HOURS
Friday March 3
Saturday March 4
12–7 PM 

Sunday March 5
12–6 PM

 

PANOS TSAGARIS AT THE ARMORY SHOW:

Panos Tsagaris

Armory Show in NY at the booth of Kalfayan Gallery (Pier 94, Booth # 817)

March 2-5, 2017

ALTERNATIVE MYTHS: CONVERSATION WITH JESSE BRANSFORD AND DOMINIC SHEPHERD:

 

Jesse Bransford "Circle to the Four Corners (Kali, Hecate, Ishtar, Lilith)" 2017

 

VOLTA NY is thrilled to announce the 2017 programming for The VOLTA Salon with artnet, the third iteration of this partnership series. For this edition, artnet considers salient contemporary topics and concerns — from higher education in the arts to historical safe spaces — that will encourage discourse and enliven artist projects at the fair.

artnet — the leading online destination to research, buy, and sell art — curates a series of salient topics for conversation at VOLTA NY. Invited industry professionals from all aspects of the art world engage the audience in a salon-style discussion program.

In association with GalleryLOG.

FRIDAY, MARCH 3, 1:00 – 2:30 PM

ALTERNATIVE MYTHS
Fascism relies on the ideological narcissism of myth, but then the mythical can also resist rising nationalism. Professor-artists and Black Mirror Network co-coordinators Jesse Bransford and Dominic Shepherd (exhibiting at VOLTA NY with CHARLIE SMITH LONDON) explore this magical potential.

Guests: Jesse Bransford (artist and associate professor, NYU Steinhardt), Dominic Shepherd (artist and associate professor, Arts University of Bournemouth)

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"Dead of Winter: Cinema of the Occult" festival at The Brattle this weekend!

I am *thrilled* to announce "Dead of Winter: Cinema of the Occult," a film festival I co-curated with magickally-minded writers, Peter Bebergal & Janaka Stucky, happening at Boston's premiere art house cinema, The Brattle.  It starts this Friday and goes through Feb 2nd, and will feature some of my all-time favorite witchly movies.

Still from "The Love Witch" (2016)

I'll be there in person this weekend as part of 2 events (and lingering to watch some films, too): 

This Friday, Jan 27th at 7pm: A Cinema of the Occult panel with Peter and Janaka to kick off the festival

&

This Saturday, Jan 28th at 7pm: My presentation, "What Is A Witch: Female Magic and Transgression in Pictures"

Details about the festival and events:

Dead of Winter: Cinema of the Occult, Friday, January 27 - Thursday, February 2, 2017

The Brattle is excited to team-up with three noted authors to co-curate this series of magical movies: Peter Bebergal, Pam Grossman, and Janaka Stucky. Each will contribute their own introductions and illuminations for films during the series and we kick off the program with a panel featuring a conversation between the three on Friday, Jan 27. This series explores images of the occult in cinema - mostly dealing with the Western traditions of witchcraft and ritual magic - from 1950s (NIGHT OF THE DEMON, BELL BOOK & CANDLE) to today (THE WITCH, THE LOVE WITCH).  A full listing of all of the films can be found here.

Peter Bebergal is the author of Season of the Witch: How the Occult Saved Rock and Roll and the forthcoming Strange Frequencies.

Pam Grossman is an independent curator, writer, and teacher of magical practice and history. She is the creator of Phantasmaphile.com and the author of the illuminated manifesto, What Is A Witch.

Janaka Stucky is an American poet, performer, and publisher. He is the founding editor of the independent publisher Black Ocean and the author of the full-length poetry collection, The Truth Is We Are Perfect.

Tickets for all events and films available here.

And here are some nice write-ups about it all in the Boston Globe and on The Arts Fuse.

Do join us!

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Autumn Witchery

Alice Austen dressed as a witch, courtesy of Alice Austen House

'Tis the season for folks like us, and I've got two tasty events I'll be taking part in to celebrate this most witchly time of year.

First up is Ghostly Intimations, an evening of spooky lectures at Staten Island's Fort Tompkins, co-sponsored by the Alice Austen House and the Morbid Anatomy Museum, and happening this Saturday the 29th.  I'll be giving an abridged version of my "Witch Pictures: Female Magic and Transgression" presentation.  Other speakers include Harold Schechter, Corinne May Botz, and Ronni Thomas, and there will be a cocktail party at the Alice Austen House afterwards.  Your favorite psychic phenomena photographer and mine, Shannon Taggart, has pulled this all together, so it's going to be an excellent evening no doubt! Details:

Ghostly Intimations

Date: Saturday, October 29th
Time: 8pm – 11pm
Admission: $15-$35
Location: ***Offsite – Fort Wadsworth, 210 New York Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10305.

Tickets Here !

Get spooked at Fort Tompkins! Join us for an evening of presentations exploring the fringes of photography, Victorian art, and occult phenomena. Co-presented by the Alice Austen House and Morbid Anatomy Museum, hosted by National Park Service inside a nineteenth century fort! Meet at Fort Wadsworth Visitor Center (210 New York Avenue, Staten Island). Bring your own flashlight! Cocktail party at Alice Austen House to follow at 10pm. Tickets required and must be purchased in advance.

Author Harold Schechter will discuss the art of writing about serial killers and the chilling true-account of Belle Gunness, the Lady Bluebeard, and the dark tourism around her crimes.

Photographer Corinne May Botz will discuss her book “The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death,” an exploration of  miniature crime scene models that were built in the 1940’s and 50’s by criminologist Frances Glessner Lee (1878 – 1962). The models, based on actual homicides, suicides, and accidental deaths, were created to train detectives to assess visual evidence.

Pam Grossman, Getty Images’ Director of Visual Trends and co-organizer of the Occult Humanities Conference at NYU, will present a lecture on “Witch Pictures: Female Magic and Transgressions in Western Art”.

Ronni Thomas, the Morbid Anatomy Filmmaker-in-Residence, discusses mad science, mysticism, romance, and necrophilia within the macabre true story behind his feature film: “No Place for The Living: The Strange Tale of Carl von Cosel”, complete with a chilling score composed by theremin expert Paul Bergel.

Next up is the Comic Arts Brooklyn festival happening on Saturday, November 5th.  I'll be at the Tin Can Forest table, helping sling books and prints and signing copies of our illuminated incantation, "What Is A Witch."  The festival is at Mt. Carmel Gymnasium, 12 Havemeyer St. in Williamsburg from 11am to 7pm.  It features 100+ exhibitors, and best of all, it is FREE, so do come along and say howdy.

Esoteric Book Conference 2016!

Thrilled to get the opportunity to speak again at the Esoteric Book Conference in Seattle this weekend.  The lineup is incredible, and includes such luminaries as Brian Cotnoir, Daniel A. Schulke, Benjamin A. Vierling, and Jon Graham.  I'll be giving my "Witch Pictures: Female Magic and Transgression in Western Art" talk on Sunday, September 11th at 12:30pm, followed immediately by a signing of "What Is A Witch" in the vendor area.  My collaborators, Tin Can Forest, will be in attendance as well, so be sure to stop by their table to say hello and marvel at their magnificent artworks.

Tickets available here.

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Cloud Cuckooland

I adore everything that Djahari Clark and Desert Sin do.  They manage to bring fairy tales and mythology to life on stage through theatrical dance and costume, and their performances are badass and breathtaking.  Their aesthetic is like a live-action 80s Henson fantasy film meets Balinese puppetry pageant, with a dark adult edge thrown into the brew.  If this all sounds delish to you, then you'll be glad to know they have a new show opening next week called Cloud Cuckooland.  Loosely based on Aristophane's The Birds, the show is an opulent avian evening of "death and passion," as the press materials state. 

If this all wasn't enough, I'm overjoyed to share that my favorite playwright / spousal comrade, Matthew Freeman, has written text for this, so I am majorly fangirling out, as the kids say. 

More info:

Cloud Cuckooland, a dark fairytale conceived and directed by Djahari Clark (Desert Sin), with lyrical text by playwright Matthew Freeman (Why We Left Brooklyn with Blue Coyote Theater Group) 

The production will run September 8-17 at House of Yes (2 Wyckoff Avenue, Brooklyn) with performances Thursday through Saturday at 8pm.

This beautiful multi-media story is a journey through sight and sound inspired by ancient Greek tragedies, and birds. A story about death and rebirth, performed with dance, puppetry, spoken word, song, and aerial. Cloud Cuckooland centers on a Girl who, upon her death, journeys into a fantasy world where she becomes Queen of the Birds. But her Queendom is contingent on leaving her heart behind…a doomed existence the ambiguous birds enjoy to the very end. Wrapped in fairytale magic, Cloud Cuckooland speaks to modern society’s diminishing link to our inner selves while awakening our imagination.

More information can be found at www.djahari.com as well as the making of Cloud Cuckooland at www.facebook.com/cuckooland.

Cloud Cuckooland
September 8, 9, 10 & 15, 16, 17 @ 8pm
House of Yes
2 Wyckoff Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11237

Tickets here - be sure to nab yours before they fly away.

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"Green Witch" event with Robin Rose Bennett in NYC!

Tin Can Forest, from "What Is A Witch," 2016

I am thrilled to announce "Green Witch: Plant Magic, Alchemy, and the Wild Feminine," an evening of conversation between myself and my teacher, the legendary green witch, Robin Rose Bennett.  Some of you know that Robin has had a deep influence on my practice and my life on the whole, and this will be a rare opportunity for me to get to ask her even more questions and exchange ideas with her about plant energy, witchcraft, divine feminism, and more.  It will be taking place on Thursday, July 28th, 7:30pm at The Alchemist's Kitchen in NYC's East Village. 

Full details:

"Green Witch: Plant Magic, Alchemy, and the Wild Feminine"
A conversation with Pam Grossman of Phantasmaphile, and renowned herbalist, Robin Rose Bennett
Thursday, July 28, 2016
7:30pmThe Alchemist's Kitchen, 21 East 1st St, NYC
$20 tickets available here

There are many interpretations of the word "witch," and as an archetype, the witch is as complex as they come. But one thing is clear: she is a potent change-maker who is intimately connected to the Earth and her magick. Whether concocting a botanical potion, engaging in seasonal ritual, or crafting an alchemical spell, she is in constant relationship to nature - and to her own wild self.

In this evening of conversation and celebration, writer and esoteric art curator, Pam Grossman, will discuss aspects of witchcraft and plant energy with her teacher, the legendary green witch, Robin Rose Bennett. Topics will include herbalism and ecology, feminine (and feminist) power, the current rise in popularity of witches, and the ways that the witch can teach us how to heal ourselves, our communities, and our planet.

Pam Grossman is a writer, curator, and teacher of magical practice and history. She is the author of the illuminated manifesto, "What Is A Witch" (Tin Can Forest Press 2016), and the creator of Phantasmaphile, a blog that specializes in esoteric and fantastical art. Pam’s group art shows and projects have been featured by such outlets as Artforum, The New York Times, The New Yorker, and Art in America. She is Associate Editor of Fulgur Esoterica and the co-organizer of the Occult Humanities Conference at NYU. 

Robin Rose Bennett is an herbalist, writer, and educator who teaches WiseWoman Healing Ways of herbal medicine and EarthSpirit teachings. She is the author of two meditation CDs and the books Healing Magic: A Green Witch Guidebook to Conscious Living, and, most recently, The Gift of Healing Herbs. www.WiseWomanHealingWays.com

I hope you'll join us.

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Discount code for Phantasmaphile readers to Friday's event!

Super excited to announce that Phantasmaphile readers get a special $10 discount for tickets to Friday's NIGHT FLIGHT book release party at Catland which Atlas Obscura is throwing to celebrate the release of "What Is A Witch!"  Just use code "phantasma" at checkout for $10 off either ticket type.  All tickets include alcoholic potions by Ravenous Craft and other booze, performances by Ellena Phillips and Desert Sin, an illustrated reading of "What Is A Witch" and discussion with yours truly, and of course an evening of magickal revelry in Brooklyn's premiere occult book shop with its glorious outdoor space out back.  It's going to be an exquisite evening, and I look forward to seeing you there.

On a related note, truly humbled and thrilled by this fantastic review of the book written by S. Elizabeth for Dirge Magazine.  Many thanks, S. Elizabeth & Dirge!!!  Made my day.

NIGHT FLIGHT: "What Is A Witch" book party at Catland on June 10th!

As promised for you Brooklynites and Brooklyn-adjacents, here's more information about the event we're having at Catland in Bushwick on June 10th to celebrate the release of What Is A Witch, the comic book / illuminated manifesto I've written in collaboration with luminous illustrators, Tin Can Forest.  It's being produced and hosted by spectacle mongers, Atlas Obscura, and they have pulled out all the stops.

The soiree will feature:

* Witchly dances by the marvelously mythic Desert Sin!

* Otherworldly music by harpist chanteuse, Ellena Phillips! 

* Alcoholic potions by Ravenous Craft! 

* Tarot & palmistry sessions by Catland's seers! 

* A special illustrated reading of "What Is A Witch" by yours truly!

And more!

It's going to be an exquisite evening, and I'm truly honored to have the book feted in such a magickal manner.  Here are all of the juicy details.  I hope you'll join me:

Night Flight!  What Is A Witch book party with Pam Grossman

Hosted by Atlas Obscura & Catland

Friday, June 10th, 7:30pm

Catland, 987 Flushing Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11206 (Map)

$28 tix available here (or $45 tix include a signed, discounted copy of the book - $20 value)

Join the New York Obscura Society and Catland Books in an immersive celebration of What Is A Witch by the inimitable writer, curator, and Phantasmaphile creator Pam Grossman and occult illustrators Tin Can Forest. This most unusual comic book is a lyrical reflection of the witch and her many guises. A visual spell, its dazzlingly gorgeous images combine with powerful wit and wisdom to create an illuminated manuscript that explores the many layers of the ultimate icon of feminine power. We celebrate the book with a wild and wondrous evening, full of music, performance, and magick.

This evening is specially designed to transport you through a world of enchantment. Be charmed by the mesmerizing dances of Desert Sin Dance Theater Co. and hypnotized by the siren songs of harpist and chantress Ellena Phillips... Imbibe the power of plants with foraged cocktail potions by Ravenous Craft... Dive deep into the divinatory powers of the occult with readings by Catland's own Tarot and Palm readers... and journey through the world of the witch with a reading and conversation with Pam Grossman.

This event is an essential magical experience for the curious, the mystically-inclined, and the most wild of wonder-seekers. Come, celebrate, and be charmed!

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Pam Grossman is a writer, curator, and teacher of magical practice and history.  She is the creator of Phantasmaphile, a blog that specializes in esoteric and fantastical art.  Her writing has appeared in Abraxas Journal, Sciences Occultes, Sabat, Huffington Post, MSN, Film Comment, and elsewhere.  Pam's group art shows and projects have been featured by such outlets as Artforum, The New York Times, The New Yorker, and Art in America.  She is Associate Editor of Fulgur Esoterica and the co-organizer of the Occult Humanities Conference at NYU.  She lives in Brooklyn with her fellow and their two feline familiars.

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I'm looking forward to celebrating with you in my hometown.  Be sure to get your tickets here. 

And there will be more events in NYC and beyond coming soon, so watch this space!

Lastly, for those of you who have pre-ordered What Is A Witch already - THANK YOU for your support!  Books (and prints if you were lucky enough to snag some) will be shipping out in mid-June.  I hope you love it as much as I loved conjuring it.

Spirits in the Air!

Hilma Af Klint  "Group IX/UW, No. 25, The Dove, No. 1, " 1915 Oil on canvas, 151 × 114.5 cm; Courtesy of Stiftelsen Hilma af Klints Verk; Photo: Moderna Museet / Stockholm

I have been very remiss in posting about the astounding Hilma Af Klint show up now at London's Serpentine Gallery.  Perhaps it was due to my unconscious mind's blind jealousy that such a thing of wonder is happening so far from where I live.  Alas!  But if you are lucky enough to be in the region, you have until this Sunday to visit it, and you simply must if you haven't already.  Do it for me.  It is deeply heartening to see this pioneer of spiritual abstraction get her due.

In good NYC-centric news, there is an incredible series of complementary otherworldly events being programmed by spirit photographer extraordinaire, Shannon Taggart, at Brooklyn's own Morbid Anatomy Museum.  The series will focus on Spiritualism, feminism,  and the history and practice of mediumship:

Wednesday, June 8, 7pm - Spirits, Spoon Benders and Suffragettes: An Introduction to Spiritualism

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2538510

Thursday, June 9, 7pm - Traditional Spiritualist Message Service

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2538531

Friday, June 10, 7pm - The Fox Sisters: Pioneers Of Spiritualism and Feminism, with Author Barbara Weisberg

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2538539

Saturday, June 11, Class, 11am – 1pm - Spirit Portraits, Auragraphs and Automatic Drawings: A Spiritualist Art Workshop with Medium Susan Barnes 

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2538558

Saturday, June 11, Lecture, 2pm – 3pm - Spiritualist Medium, Free Love Advocate and Presidential Candidate: The Revolutionary Feminism of Victoria Woodhull, An Illustrated Presentation with Dr. Cristina Zaccarini

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2538569

Saturday, June 11, Class, 3:30pm – 5:30 pm - One Minute Mediumship: An Experimental Workshop with Medium Lauren Thibodeau

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2538586

Sunday, June 12, 2pm - Traditional Spiritualist Message Service with Tea and Coffee Reception

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2538592

I am definitely planning on making it to some of these, and you should, too.

Obscura Society "Our Lady" Lecture Soiree!

Very excited to be presenting a version of my "Witch Pictures" talk for Atlas Obscura on Thursday, March 31st at the Gemini Scorpio Lounge.  "Our Lady" Lecture Soiree is an evening of talks and performance that celebrate female iconography, hosted by Obscura Society NY.  In addition to my witchery, Sonia Simoes will be teaching us about erotica, and Polina Porras will discuss the Virgin of Guadalupe.  There will also be music, drinks, and snacks!  Further details below, and tickets here:

Obscura Society NY: "Our Lady" Lecture Soiree

Exploring female iconography through lecture, libations, and musical performance

Spend an evening in adoration and exploration of the power of the female image with musical performance, cocktails, and three lectures which consider depictions of women across time and cultures. Female artists and researchers reflect on their own explorations into the power of female icons. We'll explore the transforming imagery of women from religious iconography to erotica, pornography, and style, and finally examine the image of the witch in visual culture. The magic deepens with the music of mysterious female sirens of sound. Let your mind be ignited and your soul moved as we celebrate the feminine with live music, cocktails, food, and deep investigation. 

Curator, writer, magic practitioner, and brilliant creator of Phantasmaphile, Pam Grossman will guide us through the magical and transgressive power of witch imagery in Western art, exploring the shifting visions of these oft-demonized or idealized women as archetypes, muses, and themselves visionary artists.

Sonia Simoes, writer, erotica expert, and collaborative partner in the photography project Call Me Balthazar will explore the history and politics of erotica in relationship to their work and human subjects. 

Artist Polina Porras will talk about her project "Santa Agua", through the symbology of its main character:  the Virgin of Guadalupe, whom she embodied in front of two churches in Mexico. She will explore the "birth" of this powerful Mexican icon as she dethroned the Pre-Hispanic goddess Tonantzin, incorporating ancient myth, fertility, apparitions, virgins, nature, miracles, corn bellies and clay legs.

Musical performers t.b.a. (Stay tuned... something very powerful is in the works!)

DETAILS

Thursday, March 31st at 7:30pm

by Atlas Obscura, at Gemini Scorpio Lounge, Brooklyn

$20 Early Bird (purchase by March 20th)

$35 General Admission

light hors d'ouvres included, cash bar

Food sponsorship provided by Salsa Pistolero. 

Tickets here

A lovely way to send off Women's History Month 2016!

March talks!

Kurt Seligmann "Witches" 1950

I've got some exciting events coming up next month, and I'd love to see you at either or both.

First, I'm very honored to announce that I'll be speaking at the Seligmann Center in Sugar Loaf, NY on Saturday, March 5th at 6pm.  This is where Kurt Seligmann and his wife, Arlette, lived, worked, and were subsequently buried, and the property is a beautiful sanctuary about 90 minutes outside of NYC.  I'll be giving my "Witch Pictures: Female Magic and Transgression in Western Art" presentation, and I'm already discovering many new witch images by Seligmann himself to add to my visuals.  Admission is free, but if you wish, you can let us know if you're planning on attending.  The surrounding town is charming as well, so make a day trip out of it.

Secondly, I'll be giving a 20 minute presentation as part of Morbid Anatomy Museum's marathon Festival of Arcane Knowledge.  Topic is TBD though will have an occultic bent no doubt, and I believe I'll be going on near the start of the day.  It's a tremendous sounding event indeed, and I'm excited to be part of this excellent lineup:

Morbid Anatomy’s Festival of Arcane Knowledge II, Sponsored by Brooklyn Brewery

Date: Sunday, March 13th
Time: 10.30 am – 8pm
Admission: $25 –  $20 for Morbid Anatomy Members
Location: Morbid Anatomy Museum, 424 Third Avenue, 11215 Brooklyn NY
Afterparty at Halyards (406 3rd Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215)

Tickets Here: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2501838

Please join the Morbid Anatomy Museum for the second iteration of our “Festival of Arcane Knowledge.” The day will feature MC Evan Michelson of TV’s Oddities introducing a full day of short talks, offbeat tours, demonstrations, screenings and projections by our unique community of makers, teachers, collectors and rogue scholars. Following the day’s activities we’ll host a private after party at Halyards, our favorite local bar. Hope you can make it!

Confirmed participants include Morbid Anatomy Museum co-founder Tracy Hurley Martin; serial killer scholar Harold Schechter; Andi Harriman with a short reprise of her Desire for Dramaticism: Semiotics of the 1980s Goth Subculture, Phantasmaphile founder Pam Grossman; Guardian columnist Jess Zimmerman; alchemist Brian Cotnoir; swordswallower Ilise Carter, artist Rebecca Purcell; Films curated by Mike Sappol, historian of the National Library of Medicine; A show and Tell by Mike Zohn of TV’s Oddities; Aaron Rodrigez with his insect and arachnid petting zoo; programmer in residence Shannon Taggart; NYU’s Chris Muller, perfumist Alexis Carl; hair artist in residence Karen Bachmann; Seth Gopin of Rutgers University; and much more!

Beer will be provided free of charge and lovingly by Brooklyn Brewery