Rebecca Beattie and Shreya Ila Anasuya compare Western and Eastern approaches to planetary powers and the zodiac. Astrology is shaped as much by culture as by the stars themselves. In this rich conversation, Rebecca Beattie and Shreya Ila Anasuya explore how planetary powers and the zodiac are understood in Western and South Asian traditions. Drawing on myth, symbolism and lived practice, they compare how planets are personified, gendered and worked with across cultures. The discussion also considers the spiritual and social histories that shape these systems – including the role of religion, caste and hierarchy in South Asian astrology, and how contemporary Western practitioners engage with planetary forces today. An accessible and thoughtful evening for anyone interested in astrology, myth and magical tradition. SPEAKER BIOS Shreya Ila Anasuya is a writer and researcher from India with interests in cultural history, mythology and folklore, magic and speculative storytelling. She also studies poetry, music and South Asian mysticism, particularly Shakta Tantra, and the Sufi, Bhakti, and Baul-Fakir traditions. She was an in-house Tarot reader at Treadwell’s for three years and continues to use the Tarot as a tool for creative writing. She is currently completing a PhD at King’s College London. Her first novel, The Poison Palace, is due out in early 2027. Rebecca Beattie grew up on Dartmoor, giving her an early love of nature and passion for storytelling. A Wiccan priestess since 2006, she has spent over 25 years practising witchcraft and has a rich understanding of the history and traditions underpinning pagan practice. She also has a doctorate in Creative Writing and is a published author. Her books include Planetary Magic, Wheel of the Year and The Way Through the Woods. Original Event Date: 21 January 2026

Dr. Amy Hale chats with Edgar Fabián Frías, Elijah Burgher and Hilma’s Ghost about queer magical art practices. EPISODE 6: QUEER MAGICAL ART PRACTICES In this episode, Amy Hale chats with Edgar Fabián Frías, Elijah Burgher and Hilma’s Ghost about the ways in which queer magical art practices and worldviews have the potential to inspire different ways of seeing and knowing. They discuss the role of queer magical ancestors, forgotten histories, queer utopias, and how magical art and resistance can inspire healing and action, discussing their art along the way. Episode 6 of a 10-part series about magic and contemporary art. SPEAKER BIOS Edgar Fabián Frías is a multidisciplinary artist, psychotherapist, educator, curator, and brujx based in Los Angeles. Their oeuvre encompasses installation, photography, video art, sound, sculpture, printed textiles, GIFs, ritual, performance, social practice, and community organizing, reflecting their commitment to experimentation and innovation. Frías' work explores themes of resistance, resiliency, and radical imagination in the face of colonization, environmental racism, and other contemporary issues. As a nonbinary, Wixárika, and Latinx artist whose family hails from Mexico, Frías brings a rich and diverse background to their practices. They hold dual BA degrees in Psychology and Studio Art from UC, Riverside, and an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with a focus on Interpersonal Neurobiology and Somatic Psychotherapy from Portland State University. In 2022, they completed an MFA in Art Practice at UC Berkeley. Elijah Burgher is an artist and occasional writer currently based in Berlin, whose work focuses on mythology, sexuality and subculture. He was featured in Block Party at the Westmoreland Museum of American Art in Greensburg, Pennsylvania (2023), Scrivere Desegnando at the Centre d'Art Contemporain Geneva (2020), Queer Abstraction at the Des Moines Art Center (2019), For Opacity at the Drawing Center in New York City (2018), and the 2014 Whitney Biennial, among others. He is the co-author of Sperm Cult with Richard Hawkins, published by Bad Dimension Press in 2017. Burgher received a MFA from the School of the Art Institute, Chicago and a BA from Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY. He is represented by PPOW in New York, Western Exhibitions in Chicago and Ivan Gallery in Bucharest. Hilma’s Ghost is a feminist artist collective co-founded by Brooklyn-based artists Sharmistha Ray (they/them) and Dannielle Tegeder (she/her). The collective acts as a restorative project that uplifts the voices of women, trans, and nonbinary artists using abstraction and mysticism in their work and makes them visible. The collective makes art collaboratively using divinatory methods, runs programs and workshops with spiritualists for the community, and conducts research on women artists and spiritualist practices that they use in their projects and workshops. Amy Hale is an Atlanta-based writer and critic with a PhD in Folklore and Mythology from UCLA. Her research interests include contemporary magical practice and history, art, culture, women and Cornwall. She has written widely on artist and occultist Ithell Colquhoun, and been an academic advisor to the 2025 Colquhoun retrospective at Tate St. Ives and Tate Britain. She wrote the first scholarly biography of Colquhoun, Ithell Colquhoun: Genius of the Fern Loved Gully (Strange Attractor, 2020), followed by the collection Sex Magic: Diagrams of Love, (Tate Publishing, 2024). She is also the editor of the ground-breaking collection Essays on Women in Western Esotericism: Beyond Seeresses and Sea Priestesses (Palgrave 2022). She has written extensively on magic and contemporary art, and has written for Tate, Burlington Contemporary, Art UK, The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Correspondences Journal and other institutions. She is an Honorary Research Fellow with Falmouth University in Cornwall, a trustee of the UK Charity Rediscovering Art by Women (RAW) and a member of the British Art Network. Beyond the Supernatural: Magic in Contemporary Art is due to be published with Tate Publishing in 2026. Original Event Date: 3 August 2025

Owen Davies and Ceri Houlbrook unpack the alluring world of folklore studies, exploring ley lines, ghosts, holy wells and more. Why is folklore capturing so much attention today? Even the most remote stone circles draw pilgrims, while holy wells across Britain are still dressed with offerings and petitions. In this audio recording of a live launch event at Treadwell's, Professor Owen Davies and Dr Ceri Houlbrook explore the winding history of British folklore. They trace how folklorists have studied and written about these traditions, revealing how practices adapt and survive to meet the needs of modern, diverse communities. Expect illuminating discussion, touching on ancient and new traditions, ranging from witchcraft and cryptids to fairies, Krampus and the invention of 'fakelore'. This talk launched their groundbreaking book, 'Folklore: A Journey Through the Past and Present' (available at Treadwell's). SPEAKER BIOS Owen Davies is a Professor of History at the University of Hertfordshire, specialising in the history of magic, ghosts, witchcraft and popular medicine. He has been described as Britain's 'foremost academic expert on the history of magic'. His many books include Art of the Grimoire: An Illustrated History of Magic Books and Spells (2023), Popular Magic: Cunning-folk in English History (2003) and The Haunted: A Social History of Ghosts (2007). He was president of The Folklore Society from 2020-3. Ceri Houlbrook is a Lecturer in History and Folklore at the University of Hertfordshire. Her research focuses on the material culture of ritual and folklore in Britain, from 1700 to the present. She completed her PhD at the University of Manchester in 2014, exploring the archaeology and heritage of the British coin-tree. In 2021, she published a monograph on the contemporary ritual practice of love-locks with the independent scholary publisher, Berghahn: Unlocking the Love-Lock: The history and heritage of a contemporary custom. She is editor of FLS News, the newsletter of the Folklore Society. Original Event Date: 27 November 2025

Dr. Amy Hale chats with artists Chantal Powell and Mary MacGregor Reid about their spiritual and artistic practices and their uses of alchemical imagery. EPISODE 5: NEW CONTEXTS FOR ALCHEMICAL ART For modern esoteric artists, alchemical imagery can be an extremely potent focal point for their work. In this episode, Amy Hale chats with artists Chantal Powell and Mary MacGregor Reid about their spiritual and artistic practice and the very different ways in which both artists use alchemical imagery. They will discuss what draws them creatively to these themes and their reflections on why spiritual alchemy is relevant to our lives and journeys today. Episode 5 of a 10-part series about magic and contemporary art. SPEAKER BIOS Chantal Powell is a British artist and educator whose practice is deeply informed by Jungian psychology, alchemical symbolism, and her personal exploration of the unconscious. With a PhD in psychology, she follows a Jungian art-based research approach, using artistic process to engage with archetypal material and the psyche. She works across various mediums, including ceramics, glass, textiles, metal and painting. She engages with the embodied and vegetal aspects of alchemy, rejecting mind-body dualisms and promoting a regenerative model rooted in nature and transformation. Chantal has exhibited at galleries and institutions across the UK and internationally and has her first solo institutional exhibition next year at the Levinsky Gallery, Plymouth. She is the founder of Hogchester Arts residency program, host of The Red Book Club, and a faculty lecturer at JungAcademy. She offers talks on archetypal symbolism and psychological alchemy, and has co-curated exhibitions focusing on archetypally symbolic art. Mary MacGregor Reid is a multidisciplinary artist living in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Her interest in Western Esotericism and human experience of the otherworldly is expressed through moving image, photography and sculpture. Within ceremonial ritual the assumption of archetypal characters merges with movement, gesture, and language, forming a symbolic lexicon for the esoteric practitioner. Mary reimagines this visual language - in particular the occulted symbology of alchemy - within her work and is deeply engaged in the tactile creation of both costumes and objects as an intrinsic part of the process. Amy Hale is an Atlanta-based writer and critic with a PhD in Folklore and Mythology from UCLA. Her research interests include contemporary magical practice and history, art, culture, women and Cornwall. She has written widely on artist and occultist Ithell Colquhoun, and been an academic advisor to the 2025 Colquhoun retrospective at Tate St. Ives and Tate Britain. She wrote the first scholarly biography of Colquhoun, Ithell Colquhoun: Genius of the Fern Loved Gully (Strange Attractor, 2020), followed by the collection Sex Magic: Diagrams of Love, (Tate Publishing, 2024). She is also the editor of the ground-breaking collection Essays on Women in Western Esotericism: Beyond Seeresses and Sea Priestesses (Palgrave 2022). She has written extensively on magic and contemporary art, and has written for Tate, Burlington Contemporary, Art UK, The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Correspondences Journal and other institutions. She is an Honorary Research Fellow with Falmouth University in Cornwall, a trustee of the UK Charity Rediscovering Art by Women (RAW) and a member of the British Art Network. Beyond the Supernatural: Magic in Contemporary Art is due to be published with Tate Publishing in 2026. Original Event Date: 20 July 2025

Dr. Amy Hale explores the impact of 1980s ecofeminist and goddess-inspired art, with artists Judith Noble and Christine Binney. EPISODE 3: MAGICAL ECOFEMINIST ART OF THE 1980s Modern magical art owes much to the feminist and ecofeminist artists of the 1980s, who drew inspiration from Goddess imagery and addressed themes of environmental destruction, war, nuclear proliferation and social justice. In this episode, Amy speaks with artist and art historian Judith Noble and Neo Naturists co-founder Christine Binney to explore the impact of 1980s feminist art and its legacy for magical art today. Episode 4 of a 10-part series about magic and contemporary art. SPEAKER BIOS Judith Noble is Professor of Film and the Occult at Arts University Plymouth (UK), and an artist whose work is deeply rooted in the practice of magic. She began her career as an artist filmmaker, exhibiting work internationally and working for over twenty years in the film industry, before returning to academic research and art practice. Her current research centres on artists’ moving image, surrealism, the occult, and work by women artists. She has published on filmmakers including Maya Deren, Derek Jarman and Kenneth Anger. Her continuing practice as an artist includes text+image, artist’s books and mixed media/ textile pieces created through trance work, spirit possession and interaction with the more than human. Christine Binnie studied pottery at Eastbourne Art College in the 1970s. In the early 80s, she founded the Neo Naturists performance art group with Jennifer Binnie and Wilma Johnson. They painted bodies to create performances, challenging narratives of the time. Since 2005, she has been decorating bodies of pots and humans, documenting her performances, life, wonderings and wanderings, connecting pots and people, and exploring the magic within the mundane. Amy Hale is an Atlanta-based writer and critic with a PhD in Folklore and Mythology from UCLA. Her research interests include contemporary magical practice and history, art, culture, women and Cornwall. She has written widely on artist and occultist Ithell Colquhoun, and been an academic advisor to the 2025 Colquhoun retrospective at Tate St. Ives and Tate Britain. She wrote the first scholarly biography of Colquhoun, Ithell Colquhoun: Genius of the Fern Loved Gully (Strange Attractor, 2020), followed by the collection Sex Magic: Diagrams of Love, (Tate Publishing, 2024). She is also the editor of the groundbreaking collection Essays on Women in Western Esotericism: Beyond Seeresses and Sea Priestesses (Palgrave 2022). She has written extensively on magic and contemporary art, and has written for Tate, Burlington Contemporary, Art UK, The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Correspondences Journal and other institutions. She is an Honorary Research Fellow with Falmouth University in Cornwall, a trustee of the UK Charity Rediscovering Art by Women (RAW) and a member of the British Art Network. Beyond the Supernatural: Magic in Contemporary Art is due to be published with Tate Publishing in 2026. Original Event Date: 6 July 2025

Dr. Amy Hale speaks with artists Jesse Bransford and Barry William Hale about the influence of Hermetic magic on their work. EPISODE 3: REFRAMING CONTEMPORARY HERMETIC ART Some of the most striking esoteric modern artists – such as Hilma af Klint, Olga Fröbe-Kapteyn, Austin Osman Spare and Ithell Colquhoun – were deeply influenced by Hermetic philosophies and symbols. They engaged with magical systems like Kabbalah, alchemy and Rosicrucianism, drawing inspiration from the principle 'As Above, So Below'. Contemporary artists Barry William Hale and Jesse Bransford also incorporate these systems and principles in their work, though with distinct styles and approaches. In this episode, Amy speaks with Barry and Jesse about the role of Hermetic traditions and magical practice in their art. Episode 3 of a 10-part series about magic and contemporary art. SPEAKER BIOS Jesse Bransford is a New York-based artist whose work has been exhibited internationally at institutions such as the Carnegie Museum of Art, UCLA Hammer Museum, PS1 Contemporary Art Center, and CCA Wattis Museum. He holds degrees from the New School for Social Research (BA), Parsons School of Design (BFA), and Columbia University (MFA). A professor of art at NYU, Bransford has explored belief and its visual systems since the 1990s. His work has been featured in publications by Fulgur Press, including A Book of Staves (Galdrastafabók) and The Fourth and Fifth Pyramids. He lectures widely on these themes and co-organises the biennial Occult Humanities Conference. Barry William Hale is an artist whose work is deeply rooted in esoteric and occult practice and research. He uses a variety of media including performance, video, sound, VR, painting and paper, depending on the demands of the work. A graduate of SCA and the Sydney punk squatter scene, Hale is recognised as a leading occult artist of his generation. His work has been exhibited globally, including at Equinox Festival London (2009), Adelaide Fringe Festival (2011), the 17th Australian Art Biennale Sydney (2010), Dark MOFO (2018), Raymond Buckland’s Museum of Witchcraft and Magic Cleveland (2019–2020), and multiple exhibitions with Stephen Romano in New York (2015–present). He was also featured in NYU’s Language of the Birds (2016) and Windows to the Sacred (2013) in Australia. His publications include the monograph Codex 231 (2014) and Legion 49 (2009), a deconstructivist take on the medieval grimoire. Hale lives and works in Melbourne, Australia. Amy Hale is an Atlanta-based writer and critic with a PhD in Folklore and Mythology from UCLA. Her research interests include contemporary magical practice and history, art, culture, women and Cornwall. She has written widely on artist and occultist Ithell Colquhoun, and been an academic advisor to the 2025 Colquhoun retrospective at Tate St. Ives and Tate Britain. She wrote the first scholarly biography of Colquhoun, Ithell Colquhoun: Genius of the Fern Loved Gully (Strange Attractor, 2020), followed by the collection Sex Magic: Diagrams of Love, (Tate Publishing, 2024). She is also the editor of the groundbreaking collection Essays on Women in Western Esotericism: Beyond Seeresses and Sea Priestesses (Palgrave 2022). She has written extensively on magic and contemporary art, and has written for Tate, Burlington Contemporary, Art UK, The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Correspondences Journal and other institutions. She is an Honorary Research Fellow with Falmouth University in Cornwall, a trustee of the UK Charity Rediscovering Art by Women (RAW) and a member of the British Art Network. Beyond the Supernatural: Magic in Contemporary Art is due to be published with Tate Publishing in 2026. Original Event Date: 15 June 2025

Dr. Amy Hale and Susan Aberth discuss the magical work of Leonora Carrington and its influence on modern art history. EPISODE 2: THE REDISCOVERY OF MAGIC IN MODERN ART In this episode, Amy’s guest is pioneering art historian Susan Aberth, whose groundbreaking study of surrealist Leonora Carrington helped shaped the way magic, witchcraft and the occult are framed in the study of modern art. Amy and Susan discuss how art history has responded to a deeper understanding of the influence of occultism, spiritualism and magic on artistic practices, and how the narrative of modern art is changing. Episode 1 of a 10-part series about magic and contemporary art. SPEAKER BIOS Susan L. Aberth is the Edith C. Blum Professor of the Art History and Visual Culture Program at Bard College, and a world-renowned expert on occult art and surrealism. Her 2004 book, Leonora Carrington: Surrealism, Alchemy and Art (Lund Humphries) helped introduce Carrington’s magical work to the masses. She also recently co-authored The Tarot of Leonora Carrington (Fulgur Press, 2020) with Mexican curator Tere Arcq, which is an analysis of Carrington’s tarot paintings and original major arcana deck. Susan has contributed to the following exhibitions and publications: Surrealism and Magic, Guggenheim Venice (2021), Not Without My Ghosts (2020, Traveling exhibition in England), Agnes Pelton: Desert Transcendentalist (Phoenix Art Museum, 2019), Juanita Guccione: Otherwhere (Napa Valley Museum, 2019), Surrealism, Occultism and Politics: In Search of the Marvelous (Routledge Press, 2018), Leonora Carrington: Cuentos Magicos (Museo de Arte Moderno & INBA, Mexico City, 2018), Unpacking: The Marciano Collection (Delmonico Books, Prestel, 2017), and Leonora Carrington and the International Avant-Garde (Manchester University Press, 2017). Amy Hale is an Atlanta-based writer and critic with a PhD in Folklore and Mythology from UCLA. Her research interests include contemporary magical practice and history, art, culture, women and Cornwall. She has written widely on artist and occultist Ithell Colquhoun, and been an academic advisor to the 2025 Colquhoun retrospective at Tate St. Ives and Tate Britain. She wrote the first scholarly biography of Colquhoun, Ithell Colquhoun: Genius of the Fern Loved Gully (Strange Attractor, 2020), followed by the collection Sex Magic: Diagrams of Love, (Tate Publishing, 2024). She is also the editor of the groundbreaking collection Essays on Women in Western Esotericism: Beyond Seeresses and Sea Priestesses (Palgrave 2022). She has written extensively on magic and contemporary art, and has written for Tate, Burlington Contemporary, Art UK, The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Correspondences Journal and other institutions. She is an Honorary Research Fellow with Falmouth University in Cornwall, a trustee of the UK Charity Rediscovering Art by Women (RAW) and a member of the British Art Network. Beyond the Supernatural: Magic in Contemporary Art is due to be published with Tate Publishing in 2026. Original Event Date: 13 April 2025

Dr. Amy Hale and curator Jamie Sutcliffe explore the recent surge of interest in magical and esoteric art. EPISODE 1: SHAPING THE CONTEXT FOR MAGIC IN ART TODAY Over the past 15 years, there has been an explosion of interest in magical, occult and esoteric art. What’s driving this shift, and why has it gained such popularity? In this lecture and discussion, Amy speaks with curator, writer and editor Jamie Sutcliffe to explore the intersecting conversations about magic and art that are shaping this compelling zeitgeist. Episode 1 of a 10-part series about magic and contemporary art. SPEAKER BIOS Jamie Sutcliffe is a writer, curator and co-director of Strange Attractor Press. His work explores artistic encounters with science fictive fabulation, the politics of video games, animation and its entanglements with developments in the life sciences, and the persistence of myth in digital contexts. He is the editor of the books Documents of Contemporary Art: Magic, published by The Whitechapel Gallery and The MIT Press (2021), and Weeb Theory, published by Banner Repeater (2023). His essays, reviews and interviews have been published internationally by Art Monthly, Art Review, e-flux Criticism, Frieze, The White Review, Rhizome, The Quietus, and Bricks From The Kiln, amongst others. Amy Hale is an Atlanta-based writer and critic with a PhD in Folklore and Mythology from UCLA. Her research interests include contemporary magical practice and history, art, culture, women and Cornwall. She has written widely on artist and occultist Ithell Colquhoun, and been an academic advisor to the 2025 Colquhoun retrospective at Tate St. Ives and Tate Britain. She wrote the first scholarly biography of Colquhoun, Ithell Colquhoun: Genius of the Fern Loved Gully (Strange Attractor, 2020), followed by the collection Sex Magic: Diagrams of Love, (Tate Publishing, 2024). She is also the editor of the groundbreaking collection Essays on Women in Western Esotericism: Beyond Seeresses and Sea Priestesses (Palgrave 2022). She has written extensively on magic and contemporary art, and has written for Tate, Burlington Contemporary, Art UK, The Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Correspondences Journal and other institutions. She is an Honorary Research Fellow with Falmouth University in Cornwall, a trustee of the UK Charity Rediscovering Art by Women (RAW) and a member of the British Art Network. Beyond the Supernatural: Magic in Contemporary Art is due to be published with Tate Publishing in 2026. Original Event Date: 30 March 2025

Rebecca Beattie and Mhara Starling discuss their personal experiences with fairies, witchcraft and wild places. Most people think of tiny, kindly, winged creatures when they think of fairies. In contrast, traditional folktales often depict them as full-sized, menacing and formidably powerful. In this online event, Treadwell's tutor Rebecca Beattie joins Welsh witch Mhara Starling for a conversation about fairies, nature and magic. They consider the long history of the Fae through British folklore, their famous myths and stories, and how the image of the fairy became significantly more friendly during the Victorian period. They also explore the Fae's deep roots in the land and their links to witchcraft, before discussing their personal relations with these native spirits. Expect a rich conversation between two witches of the wild places as they examine the mystery and mythos of these enchanting and often dangerous beings. SPEAKER BIOS Mhara Starling was born in North Wales, and raised on the Isle of Anglesey, an island deeply immersed in a sense of magic and mythology. She is a native Welsh speaker, and a Swynwraig, a modern day Welsh Witch. She writes and teaches on the subjects of Welsh mythology, magic, folklore and witchcraft. Her most recent book, Welsh Fairies, focuses on fairy belief and its connection to magical practice within both a historical and modern context. Rebecca Beattie grew up on Dartmoor, giving her an early love of nature and passion for storytelling. A Wiccan priestess since 2006, she has spent over 25 years practising witchcraft and has a rich understanding of the history and traditions underpinning pagan practice. She also has a doctorate in Creative Writing and is a published author. Her books include 'Planetary Magic', 'Wheel of the Year' and 'The Way Through the Woods'. Original Event Date: 11 March 2025