The breath of dark symbolic Art is vast and we have only chosen a few areas where symbol has directly intertwined with the Dark Artists we admire. The Occult or Hidden arts require a natural fascination.. an interest in the Dark part of our nature we so often overlook. Occult Symbol Although Jacquemin’s interest in various forms of occultism such as Occult Christianity and Rosicrucianism partially fueled her artistic progress and success, it could have harmed her as well. Some art historians believe Jacquemin’s art was deliberately swept under the rug because of her questionable occult alliances. In many sources, contemporaries described Jacquemin as a devoted Satanist who lived in a Satanic commune for a period of time.

Buchdahl, Gerd (1989). "History of Science and Criteria of Choice". In Stuewer, Roger H. (ed.). Historical and Philosophical Perspectives of Science. Vol.5. Gordon and Breach. pp.232ff. ISBN 978-2881243509. Artist bones tan jones was one of the artists featured in the Somerset House exhibition and also had an installation at the Serpentine Gallery in 2022. They have just been announced as artist-in-residence at The Sustainable Institution in Europe. Their work has strong connections to paganism and spiritualism. Ancient alphabet used throughout North Europe and prominent in Scandinavia, used in modern times by various religious faiths, such as Asatru. The term occult sciences was used in 16th-century Europe to refer to astrology, alchemy, and natural magic. The term occultism emerged in 19th-century France, [1] amongst figures such as Antoine Court de Gébelin. [2] It came to be associated with various French esoteric groups connected to Éliphas Lévi and Papus, and in 1875 was introduced into the English language by the esotericist Helena Blavatsky.The following is a list of symbols associated with the occult. This list shares a number of entries with the list of alchemical symbols as well as the list of sigils of demons. A serpent or dragon consuming its own tail, it is a symbol of infinity, unity, and the cycle of death and rebirth. Artistic occulture or occult artistry consciously centre the process on physical works (unless we count ritual as performance art) so that is what we should be looking out for. Not art as psychotherapy but art as consciously directed creation where there are 'forces' to be harnessed. Another feature of occultists is that–unlike earlier esotericists–they often openly distanced themselves from Christianity, in some cases (like that of Crowley) even adopting explicitly anti-Christian stances. [29] This reflected how pervasive the influence of secularisation had been on all areas of European society. [29] In rejecting Christianity, these occultists sometimes turned towards pre-Christian belief systems and embraced forms of Modern Paganism, while others instead took influence from the religions of Asia, such as Hinduism and Buddhism. In various cases, certain occultists did both. [29] Another characteristic of these occultists was the emphasis that they placed on "the spiritual realization of the individual", an idea that would strongly influence the twentieth-century New Age and Human Potential Movement. [29] This spiritual realization was encouraged both through traditional Western 'occult sciences' like alchemy and ceremonial magic, but by the start of the twentieth century had also begun to include practices drawn from non-Western contexts, such as yoga. [29]

Such images are, ultimately, indicative of women’s emancipation: an insistent topic by the mid-19th century, which saw the first wave of feminism. And, certainly, the resounding tone of a revived interest in the figure of the goddess – in the 19th century and today – is one of empowerment. That Symbolist artists were overwhelmingly male is a curious point, given that women were central to the occult revival, from Blavatsky to the influential women of the Golden Dawn and female mediums. (It should be noted that Impressionism, which was contemporaneous with Symbolism, was a gender-equal movement.) Representations by women that engage with the occult and the chthonic are more readily found amongst the Surrealists, who were deeply influenced by Symbolism. Whereas artists such as Khnopff and Moreau drew on established iconographies, the Surrealists created new mythologies, linking primordial energies to the creativity of the unconscious. In André Breton’s writings, notably Nadja (1928), woman represents this force through her connection to procreation, dreams and the underworld. For the female artists associated with Surrealism, this ideal was no doubt a burden, stifling them with the laurels of the muse. Yet, in their own art, occultism stimulated novel explorations of nature, creation and subjectivity. These works do not tend towards a facile identification of womanhood with creative power. Méret Oppenheim’s The Green Spectator (One Who Watches While Someone Dies) (1933/59), for instance, portrays nature as a dispassionate, cyclical force, its pared-down, columnar form both human and snake-like, its materials – copper and wood painted to resemble serpentine – signalling its primal origins: the underground world of the serpent. 4 The tetractys is a equidistant and equiangular arrangement of ten points inside a triangle, akin to the fourth triangle number. It was developed by Pythagoras, and collectively signifies cosmic unity in the form of The Decad, as well as the musica universalis, or collective abstraction of the music generated by heavenly cosmic bodies. It also represents the four elements of nature, as well as the dimensional organization of space-time. Learning and adhering to its metaphysical knowledge was a requirement inside the occult Pythagorean religions.

While there appear to be periods of intensity in occult interest, these currents never cease; they are entwined in our experience of reality” – Victoria Jenkins The Victorian era was a time of great artistic expression, and the occult-inspired art of the period was no exception. From the dark and mysterious works of the Pre-Raphaelites to the spiritual symbolism of the Arts and Crafts movement, the Victorian era saw a surge in occult-inspired art. A symbol originating from The Eternal Champion, later adopted by occultists and role-playing games.

One of the earliest known examples of sacred geometry can be found in the art and architecture of ancient Egypt, where geometric shapes and patterns were used to represent cosmic and spiritual principles. These shapes and patterns, which included the pyramid, the circle, and the spiral, were believed to be imbued with sacred properties and were used in the design of temples, tombs, and other sacred spaces. The Pre-Raphaelites were a group of British painters, poets, and designers who sought to revive the art of the Italian Renaissance. They were heavily influenced by the occult, and their works often featured themes of mysticism, symbolism, and the supernatural. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John William Waterhouse, and Edward Burne-Jones are some of the most famous Pre-Raphaelite artists. Hanegraaff, Wouter (2006). "Occult/Occultism". In Wouter Hanegraaff (ed.). Dictionary of Gnosis and Western Esotericism. Leiden: Brill Publishers. pp.884–889. ISBN 978-90-04-15231-1. The Metatron Cube a symbol using Sacred Geometry that is a metaphor for the known connected universe. A seal consisting of a Manji, Star of David, Ankh, Om, and Ouroboros, used by the Theosophical Society, an organization formed in 1875 to advance Theosophy.Just like Hilma af Klint decades later, Georgiana Houghton created automatic drawings, claiming that she was led by a spirit called Lenny along with seventy Archangels. As a result, she produced abstract compositions of interwoven lights decades before the word abstraction was ever applied to art.