A bit of self-promotion: Magical Calendar art project

I said that I wouldn't do this very often, but honestly the things I research and post on Occult Chicago entwine themselves with my artwork enough that I have a hard time separating them at times.  And to be honest, I thought that this project would be of interest to the readers of Occult Chicago.

I'm working on a year-long Magical Calendar project, focusing on themes of magic in the year of 2013.  This stems from my obsession with the De Croze/Orazi Calendrier Magique made for 1897.

I'm releasing one limited edition fine art print each month, and have just released the image for January.

This is a detail of LILITH, the January image.  The original hand colored / painted silver print is being reproduced as a museum quality archival pigment print, signed and numbered in an edition of only 13.

For more information about the calendar project, visit my artwork blog.

To purchase this print, visit my online store.

Thank you,

Rik

The Nature of Ghosts and the Human Spirit

Speaking of Leadbeater, he's mentioned in this offer to make some cash in exchange for proving that ghosts exist.  Take a look at this wonderful artwork!

Chicago Examiner, 1908

And for even more amazing artwork...  "After You Are Dead."

Also from the Chicago Examiner, 1908. 

Occult Digest covers

Lucky for us, Tumblr user onanhero has scanned many of those early, hard to find painted Occult Digest covers.

Many more on the original post here:
http://onanhero.tumblr.com/post/15646669281/covers-from-9-of-the-first-10-issues-of-occult

Thank you for sharing these, onanhero!

Art show tonight

Another shameless bit of self promotion as I remind everyone that I have a one night art exhibition tonight.

Please stop by and say hello if you are free.

Facebook event invitation
My art website

Thank you again for following Occult Chicago!

two art exhibitions featuring Rik Garrett

Yes, that's me.  I didn't start this blog with any intention of self-promotion.  There have, however, been a few requests for more information about myself.  And since I do have two art exhibits in Chicago this month (whose subject matter is pertinent to the subject of the blog), I thought I would let everyone know.

One of the exhibitions is a solo gallery show of my series Earth Magic.  This is a set of photographs taken with the wet plate collodion process.   These black and white photographs will be on display for one night only, June 21 2012 from 5-9:00 pm at Morpho Gallery's Loop location.

Chris Elmore of music blog Hammer Smashed Sound kindly designed these postcards for me.

With Earth Magic I've envisioned a matristic, nature based world; a female-centric, ritualistic community completely apart from the rest of society. This is a history of "witchcraft" devoid of "witch hunts," a race of women who draw their energy and inspiration from the Earth itself. What if there were a truth to the myths of Amazons and the books like Aradia, Gospel of the Witches? What if the fierce Maenads of Greek mythology still existed today, hidden from view?
What if these truths were presented faithfully?

A Facebook invitation for this event can be found here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/338802882858010/

The second exhibition is a group show at the new Leroy Neiman Center.  "Act II:  Fiction Brings it Closer"  will include several images from my Symbiosis series.  While this exhibition opens on June 19th, there will not be a reception until the closing event on July 7th.  If one was so inclined, they could take a look at these images on their way to the opening reception of Earth Magic - both galleries are around two blocks away from each other.

This series of small mixed media photographic works draw inspiration from a variety of (what I see to be) related themes:  Alchemical symbolism including the Rebis, sigil magick, love, desire....


So if you are interested, please consider attending these events.  Feel free to come by and introduce yourself.


More information:
http://www.rikgarrett.com
http://www.facebook.com/rikgarrettphotography

Johnny Decker Miller

Johnny Decker Miller is a Chicago based artist whose work is currently on display at Swim Cafe.

The current exhibition is titled Le Mystere Lycnthropique. 

Images taken from the artist's blog.

Agartha

 

 Chapbook of Miller's automatic drawings, Smoke Oracles.  I saw this for sale at Alchemy Arts.

Chicago artist Elijah Burgher

Local artist Elijah Burgher has already been mentioned on Occult Chicago on at least two separate occasions, so it seemed time to dedicate a post to him.

Burgher works with tools such as sigilization to produce magical-personal works of art.  He has recently shown at Western Exhibitions (at the same time as Black Thorns in the White Cube) and as part of Homoccult & Other Esoterotica.

Build Better Human Beings

Anal Swastika (Recruiter Version)

Ghost Vomit

Black Mirror

All images taken from Burgher's blog, Ghost Vomit.  He is also on Tumblr.

Chicago artist Corkey Sinks

Corkey Sinks was mentioned in the previous entry on Chicago's Occult Artists.  Last night I saw some of her work at the MFA Exhibition at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.  My eye was caught by the angular candles and a bookshelf (the nerdy part of me instantly noticed a copy of Richard Cavendish's The Black Arts).

From the artist's website

"The research branched into the lives of celebrities, Mia Farrow, Anton LaVey, the Manson Family, Kenneth Anger, the Beatles, Gerald Ford, etc. and the occult, building upon the American-centric imagination of a hidden evil." (From this interview with Stephanie Cristello)

The Graduate Exhibition is open until May 16th.  Visit the site for more information.

Homoccult & Other Esoterotica

Another exhibition that just ended.  It's sad that I wasn't able to post about it here in time, but amazing that all of these events are going on simultaneously.


Homoccult & Other Esoterotica is a group of short experimental queer films focused on magick & the occult - curated by Daniel McKernan - which was screened in Chicago at S&S PROJECT over the weekend of April 6-8, 2012.


http://brainwashed.com/daniel/homoccult/

"Many of the films capture the spirit of arch-gay cinematic spell-casters Kenneth Anger and Derek Jarman, especially those made by the program's more (in)famous participants, such as Throbbing Gristle alumni Genesis Breyer P-Orridge and the late Peter Christopherson (operating together as the Threshold HouseBoys Choir)." - Matt Sussman, Flavorpill

There was also a visual artwork aspect which featured the artwork of Christos Andrews, Elijah Burgher, ColectivoMultipolar, Maj Furani, Erika Keck, George Keller, Armando Lozano, Daniel McKernan, Sofia Moreno and Erik Peterson.

Black Thorns in the White Cube

Unfortunately this show ended right before I started this blog.  Chicago curator Amelia Ishmael curated this art exhibition relating to black metal culture.  "Esoteric symbols of the occult and strange ceremonies" filed the exhibition (quote by Flavorwire).

Photograph by Tereza Zelenkova, courtesy the artist's website

"Black Thorns in the White Cube" exhibited locally at Western Exhibitions.  Artists included:  Alexander Binder, Vincent Como, Terence Hannum, Karlynn Holland, Elodie Lesourd, Aaron Mette, Christophe Szpajdel, Grant Willing and Tereza Zelenkova.

Works left to right by Aaron Mette and Terence Hannum.  Photograph courtesy Western Exhibitions.

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