The Speakers
G. Antra
G. Antra Presents:
"Adorn Thyself: Painted for the Gods."
As magicians we know use of tools can strengthen our workings. Robes, candles, jewelry, and many such things come to mind...but...what about makeup? We often overlook the usefulness of makeup in ritual and spell work though it's uses span time, culture, and gender. Join me as we discuss this versatile magickal tool.
G. Antra (They/She) is the owner/artist of Embalmed Apple working in traditional, and makeup art. A spiritual occultist, and experimental magician of 25+yrs specializing in divination, scrying, and oracle. You can find their socials and current projects via Linktr.ee/EmbalmedApple
Ixel Balamke
Ixel Balamke Presents:
"The Arte de Magica of Austin Osman Spare"
Austin Osman Spare (30 December 1886 – 15 May 1956) was an English artist and occultist who worked as both a draughtsman and a painter. Influenced by symbolism and art nouveau, his art was known for its clear use of line and its depiction of monstrous and sexual imagery. AO Spare created his own system of magical sigils and alphabet to create his magical art. This lecture will examine his technique and process. You, too, can learn from his technique to create your own magical art.
Celebrating 40 years of membership in Ordo Templi Orientis, Ixel Balamke is a Bishop of Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica. She is an accomplished priestess, ritual artist and historian of esoteric currents.
Colin Campbell
Colin Campbell Presents:
"The Steganographia of Trithemius"
The Steganographia of the Abbot Trithemius, often historically reduced to a role as mentor to Agrippa, is an exceptional work of magic and cryptography written in 1500 that combines the practices of both. Circulating for over one hundred years in manuscript form, it was finally published in 1608, landing on the Index Prohibitorum just three years later. While the work is outwardly a treatise on invoking angels to communicate secret messages, its true purpose was in embedding messages in otherwise innocuous cover-text. This talk will discuss the background, scope, and mechanics of each of the three chapters of Steganographia, its reliance on pre-existing magical works, and later influence on Trithemius' own reputation and later magicians such as John Dee.
Colin Campbell has been a student of Western ceremonial magick for over thirty years and is the author of several books, including A Concordance to the Holy Books of Thelema, The Magic Seal of Dr. John Dee: The Sigillum Dei Æmeth, The Offices of Spirits, Of the Arte Goetia, and most recently Thelema: The Life, Work, and Philosophy of Aleister Crowley. He frequently lectures on various subjects of ceremonial magick, its practice, and its history.
Helga Hedgewalker
Helga Hedgewalker Presents:
"Color a Magic Spell"
Even if you think you have no artistic talent, coloring pictures is a powerful way to make magic happen. It allows your mind to simultaneously relax and focus while spell-casting. You can speak directly to your deep subconscious while following and drifting along with the lines and shapes within. The hard work of selecting appropriate symbols and designing compositions are all taken care of. It can be so much fun, the "work of intention" can seem almost effortless.
Art supplies will be provided, along with coloring sheets from my book: “Color A Magick Spell”, from Llewellyn Publications. There are 26 ready-to-use spells to choose from: everything from prosperity to love, friendship, health, justice —and more. While we color, I will talk a bit about using art in ritual and answer any questions.
You bring your creativity and energy, and together we’ll make magic!"
Helga Hedgewalker is a Visionary Artist, Priestess and Witch with decades of professional experience in print design, illustration, book design, package design, web graphics and advertising. She is a founding member of the Minneapolis Collective of Pagan Artists, now rebranded as Mythic Art Circle. Her creative works are offerings of beauty to the Gods.
Scott Michael Stenwick
Scott Michael Stenwick Presents:
"Encoding The Mysteries"
The encoding of complex symbolism within simple and elegant expressions is a central practice in both art and magick. This can be done for many reasons, including everything from concealment of meaning to communication of the same at a deep intuitive level. This presentation will discuss how these techniques work and how they can be applied in magical works, artistic works, and other artifacts and processes that occupy both categories.
Scott Michael Stenwick is the author of the Mastering Enochian Magick series from Pendraig Publishing and has practiced John Dee and Edward Kelley's Enochian magical system for about thirty years. He has presented on Enochian magick at Paganicon, the national convention of Ordo Templi Orientis, and several events at Leaping Laughter OTO here in Minneapolis.
He is also a longtime magick blogger, updating and maintaining the Augoeides blog. He is a Thelemite and was initiated into Ordo Templi Orientis in 1995. He currently serves as Master of Leaping Laughter Lodge, as an ordained EGC Priest and Deacon, and as a chartered Ordo Templi Orientis initiator. In addition to his Enochian series, he has contributed to several magical anthologies and runs a regular general ritual magick class at the lodge that is a public event open to practitioners and seekers of all skill levels.
Roger Williamson
Roger Williamson Presents:
"Fetish of the Witch Queen; The Jewel Machine - A study of Bram Stoker's The Jewel of Seven Stars reveals its concealed magickal machine of gender reconciliation."
In The Fetish of the Witch Queen UK-born esotericist author and entrepreneur Roger Williamson articulates an occult theory of art as an object of visionary experience. In the radical metaphysical tradition of artist-thinkers like Austin Osman Spare, John Fowles, Sax Rohmer and Kenneth Grant, he observes that qualities like creativity, imagination, and concentration are common denominators in esoteric practice.
One of the richest and most meaningful of these experiences is the quest for union with an aspect of ourselves which is called by many names including Holy Guardian Angel but which is also more traditionally known as the daemon, which brings us to the purpose of the focus of this presentation."
Williamson’s practice seeks to re-enliven a kind of mystery, revitalising the senses and questioning reality. He was inspired from an early age by the French Symbolist painters of late nineteenth century France,.
These artistic influences, in conjunction with his own esoteric upbringing and practical experiences of mythology and dream control, form the matrix, a collective oeuvre upon which his paintings and writings are an extension.
Using diverse creative media, whether painting or writing books, Williamson endeavors to develop techniques that materialize the sensuous dreaming experience into the language of the waking world. Aspiring to reintroduce mystery and ambiguity back into the adventure of human existence through the creative process, encouraging artistic audiences towards “living effulgent and invigorating lives, revitalized from the secretions of our subconscious.”