The Grotesque Body: Occultism's Strangeness, Repulsion, Fascination December 10, 2009

One of the most fascinating things about 'occult art,' not least as seen in Austin Osman Spare, is a sense of the grotesque. Likewise occult literature and 'weird tales.' Elisa Gray is a doctoral researcher working on 'the grotesque body' and tonig ht she explores the attraction of repulsion, the monster or chimera and the duality and complexity of reproduction, 'shape shifting' and aging. She starts with Bakhtin and his notion of the 'carnivalesque' - the grotesque as celebration and rebellion; she will then take us through Oscar Wilde and views of female sexuality in works such as The Sphinx and The Harlotts House. Finally, she will end with a look at Kristeva and Braidotti’s concepts of the abject and woman as monster and machine. This night is for you, if you are drawn to ideas underpinning imagery of the demonic supernatural.

Time: 7.15 for 7.30 start

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