With Jaye Fishel of Bullhorn Press and Eliza Swann of The Golden Dome School
Saturday, June 18, 2-5pm
Bullhorn Press Studios, Highland Park
$25 Member / $30 Regular

Alchemy, the secret art of the land of Khem, is one of the oldest sciences known to the world. Alchemy is a complex early form of chemistry, with philosophic and magical associations that are concerned with the attainment of an ecstatic state of communion with the entire Universe. The Alchemical body of art and literature are all centered around the process of realizing this divine unity on an esoteric and exoteric level through symbolically represented laboratory processes. Together, we will learn what some of these processes are, and communally create a deck of Alchemical Oracle Cards.

During this three hour workshop Eliza Swann will offer a brief introduction to the history of alchemy, a discussion of some common visual tropes in alchemical imagery, and will finally lead a guided meditative exploration of the seven steps that make up the alchemical opus. This will be followed up by a visual exploration / drawing session. Jaye Fishel will then give each participant the tools to make an alchemical “card” on the Bullhorn letterpress illustrating a part of the Alchemical process or a symbolic image that is resonant. By the end of this three hour session, we will have communally created a “deck” of Alchemical Oracle cards that each participant can take home. Students will also learn the basic principles of printing on a 219 Vandercook letterpress.

Eliza Swann is an interdisciplinary artist, tarot healer, teacher, alchemist, and hypnotherapist based in Los Angeles. Eliza has trained in hypnotherapy at the Isis Centre in England, Hindu cosmology and yoga with Dr. Vagish Shastri in Benares, India, Tarot and Western Magical Practice with the Builders of the Adytum Western Mystery School, exorcism and energy work with Athena in New York City, and has recently received a Master’s degree in Fine Art from Central St. Martins in London. Eliza is the founder of The Golden Dome School, a nomadic mystery school that studies the triangulation between art, science, and spirit for the advancement of planetary consciousness.

Jaye Fishel runs Bullhorn Press, a letterpress studio dedicated to printing in the tradition of the democratic multiple.

While most WCCW programming is free or donation-based, with no one turned away for lack of funds, we do offer some workshops that have fees associated. This covers materials and allows us to pay the leaders of these workshops for their time and expertise, and to put a small percentage back into WCCW. This income, in addition to memberships, is what lets us keep the doors open and the lights on. We want to make programming as accessible as possible to anyone who is interested though, so we also offer volunteer opportunities and free community tickets to each event or workshop (number varies depending on capacity of the class). Email [email protected] for more info or to find out more about this opportunity for a specific event.