Occult Art - Tumblr Posts

This originally started out as a traditional illustration, but I messed up the watercolour, so I coloured and shaded it digitally instead.

Yay, I drew another goat (goat boy? goat person??), cool. I tried to get more into painting actual backgrounds, as my last illustrations where kind of lacking in that department. Also this paintings colour palette and general 'vibe' was heavily referenced from the music video for 'wonderland' by Aimer, although I would not call it outright fanart.

I decided to go with lineart and a combination of soft and cell shading, as I have neither the time nor the energy to do a full-on painting right now. I must say that I quite enjoyed doing those little art nouveau inspired "loops" in the hair :). I have to admit that whilst I like the composition and colour scheme of this illustration, I'm not a huge fan of the shading and anatomy, especially the rather stylized face in combination with those creepy, waaay-too-detailed hands.

I still have not learned how to properly draw clothing folds, especially those found on the sleeve of a shirt, so please excuse the mess that I drew :/

Another semi-realistic portrait! This time I am really happy with how it turned out in regards to colourscheme, composition and shading. The anatomy, in particular around the neck area looks a little bit 'off', a little bit weird, but it's tolerable.

Messing around with orange & blue...

I experimented a bit with the colours by creating a set colour palette in advance (similarly to how you would pre-mix colours in traditional art) and I'm not sure how to feel about the end result. It's certainly.....a lot more....green....than most of my work...

Motive-wise I based this illustration on the mythological figure of Kirke (Or Circe?? Idk how to properly anglicize her name), specifically her appearance in the Odyssey, as referenced by the pig in the background. But it's been a while since I read that particular part of the Odyssey, so there might be a couple inaccuracies to be found.

It's been some time since I last picked up my watercolours. Being more used to digital art, it was a bit weird not to have precise control over the colours and shading, but I got used to it again after a short while. Although I was not fully happy with certain details (the trees, the sky and the dragon-snake-thingie, for example), so I went over them with acrylics, something I had never done before, and I've got to say that acrylic paint is a far 'easier' medium to use than I had remembered.

Just a bit of messing around with colours.

(Reddish Orange and desaturated Green is not a combination I expected to work out, but it kinda did)

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(More Zoom-Ins for some details)

🌟The Magician🌟

(yes, we have apparently become pretentious enough to title our paintings)

I thought I might do something magic-related for Halloween, so here you go.

It's been several months since I picked up watercolours, due to this parts of this illustration are a bit rough, but I am low key kinda proud of the composition.

(Close-up)

Okay, kids let’s talk about sculpture, specifically Belgium devils.

In 1837, St. Paul’s Cathedral commissioned an art exhibition from sculptor Joseph Geff, and in the collection of Saints, there was to be Lucifer at the front with his back to the holy images. The Lucifer marble statue was named “L’ange du mal” or “The Angel of Evil” and was installed in 1842—just one problem.  The statue was “distracting” and “the devil is too sublime” (Geuzaine 1990). The bottom line is that the statue was too hot to be in a church. 

I mean I get what they’re saying as a MLM. One lucky William II of the Netherlands purchased it after it was taken down. Wonder what he did with it. So no one is lusting over the devil in holy ground anymore. Yay! But now there is no centerpiece in the display. Boo! To replace “L’ange Du Mal”, the cathedral asked the sculptor’s brother Guillaume to create a new one. The resulting statue, “Le Genie Du Mal” or “The Genius of Evil” is arguably hotter than the original. Chained to a rock, little horns poking through wavy hair, a face crying beautifully in anguish, broken crown in hand, and a representation of original sin– highly argued to be the sin of sex– at his feet. St. Paul installed it though, and it stands at the altar to this day. 

Sublime indeed. 

Source: Fairway, Allen. “The Devil Is Too Sublime.” Art History News, 18 Nov. 2020, blogs.kent.ac.uk/artistry/2020/11/18/the-devil-is-too-sublime/ 

The Image of Ultimate Evil

The Devil and other emissaries of hell have been know by many names throughout the years.

Belial.

Behemoth.

Beelzebub.

Asmodeus.

Satanas.

Lucifer. Okay, I’m done I just wanted to have my Ghost moment because Year Zero is a great song. Old Scratch has as many artistic interpretations throughout history as he has names. Starting around the Middle Ages the devil got a concrete image that wasn’t just copies of pagan deities. From presiding over sinners in Hell to playing monks like instruments in propaganda, this iteration of Satan is often animalistic, grotesque, and overtly sexual in a disgusting way. 

Like this 1260 mural for example. Horrid, weird, and having his junk out in the open. This trend lasted till the Renaissance and the publishing of John Milton’s Paradise Lost. With this poem, the idea of satan shifted into something more sympathetic, human, and handsome. See my previous post for some examples of Renaissance Lucifer. This beauty lasts till the modern era, but we also see the introduction of Satan depicted as a representation of modern indulgences and greed. This is personally my favorite version, a sophisticated and charming devil with a silver tongue and selling fast luxury. Especially in DC Comics, the devil is a suave antihero and an extremely compelling character. 

Source: “The Changing Faces of Satan.” BBC Teach, BBC, 8 Nov. 2019, www.bbc.co.uk/teach/the-changing-faces-of-satan/zk7p7nb

Sitting, Smiling On Your Shoulder

It is well known that in medieval art, Satan is often depicted as butt ugly and grotesque. But where do we see him in this art? According to one journal, we mostly often see him in relation to two biblical figures: The Betrayer Judas and The Believer Mary Madelene. While Mary Madelene is interesting in her own right, I particularly want to look at the art of the devil and Judas. The first way we see the devil with Judas is perched over his solider as he makes a pact with the roman guards to betray Jesus at the last supper.

In this 1302 painting we see the devil as a shadowing and canine-like. He is shown committing the sin of greed with Satan guiding his hand. The next way we see Judas is with the devil on his back during the last supper, often with Judas seeming remorseful even though he is about to betray the Son of Man with a kiss. But the one I find the most interesting is Judas’s death by suicide. In his guilt over betraying Jesus, he hangs himself. The exact way the demons are shown vary, from pulling the rope and hanging him to embracing him. But my favourite interpretation is the devil pulling Judas’s soul from his body to be sent to Hell. There is such a sense of remorse and panic in these paintings that illustrates how much Hell and the Devil was feared. Or to some people how the traitor Judas was despised. It also has the most colourful devils, both in pallet and design. Green, frog-like, butterfly-winged, and bird feet seem to be a common theme with these interpretations like in this 1476 painting.

Dante says that Judas is being chewed on in Hell by the Devil. Based on these paintings, I think it’s a double punishment with how bad his breath probably is.

Source: Monzón Pertejo, Elena, and Victoria Bernad López. “The demons of judas and Mary Magdalene in medieval art.” Religions, vol. 13, no. 11, 2022, p. 1048, https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13111048

”…the loss thereupon Paradise wherein he was placed.”

Book one of Paradise Lost sets the scene of all the hosts of hell immediately after they have been thrown from heaven, dazed in a fiery lake. This is where we meet the protagonist of the novel, Satan and sees his first definable character traits: courage, confidence, and determination. The devil instead of exploding with rage at his forces instead rallies them in saying, “All is not lost; the unconquerable will, And study of revenge, immortal hate, And courage never to submit or yield; (And what is else not to be overcome?) That glory never shall his wrath or might Extort from me, to bow and sue for grace With suppliant knee and deify his power, Who from the terror of his arm so late Doubted his empire.” Despite his falling in conquering Heaven, he is still confident in his cause and command. He also talks to his troops much like a heroic leader would encouraging them to stand strong and with pride. It is really interesting for Lucifer to be framed in this light, especially right after his failed rebellion against the almighty. One would expect anger, fear, frustration, cowardice. Instead Milton’s Satan who despises weakness and is set in his goals. This heroic leader set up frames Lucifer as the hero for the rest of the poem, and down he line in history as a sympathetic figure.

Leonard, John 1940-, and John Milton. Paradise Lost (Book I). Penguin Books, 2000.

“The fruit of that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste brought death into the world.”

In Book IX of Paradise Lost, Satan finally overcomes his internal conflict and struggle in seducing Eve to eat from the forbidden tree of knowledge. The fact that the Devil struggles with this seduction is interesting but either way it occurs. The way Satan seduces Eve is by presenting the tree as a gateway to knowledge and truth. This is so interesting especially in the modern day with the theme of the perversion of knowledge. The devil says to her, “Why then was this forbid? Why but to awe; Why but to keep you low and ignorant, His worshippers; he knows that in the day Ye eat thereof, your eyes that seem so clear, Yet are but dim, shall perfectly be then Open’d and clear’d, and ye shall be as gods.” Humanity has always found our power to be on par with God, but that’s probably never for the best. Satan appeals to that part of humanity, and in that Eve takes a bite. And so Paradise is lost.

Leonard, John 1940-, and John Milton. Paradise Lost (Book IX). Penguin Books, 2000.

“You will wear your independence like a crown.”

In Ghost’s 2015 “From the Pinnacle to the Pit”, the singer describes the falling of Satan from heaven and his accursed rule of Hell. In the song it is depicted as an act of a hero and a king, as the devil does become. It also emphasises the idea of the fallen angel as a rebellious figure looking for independence from a tyrannical God. The whole song is a melancholy celebration of the Devil’s freedom and the start of his rule of the Pit.

 Ghost BC. “From the Pinnacle to the Pit.” Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/track/2J5aJp4HQxcMuxZ6HVM4GC

The Blood Is White And Spouting Steam

Have you ever heard the shrill whistle of a train? Like a scream, cutting through the night and making your blood run cold. Ever since their inception, trains and train tracks have been seen as haunted things. Train tracks in particular have the nature of a post-industrial crossroad, in the way it is considered a man-made gateway to the other side or even Hell. And trains themselves have their myths and ghosts, but what about devils? Throughout modern American mythology, the Devil has been said to drive a long black train or a funeral train. In “The Devil’s Train” by Hank Williams the train is a thing of beauty waiting on a crowd of people to get on the cars, but it leads to only misery and is headed by drunken engineers driving it to doom. The whistle in particular is pointed out as a mechanism of temptation, calling and screaming to those who would listen. It is the whistle that calls also in a song that 2010’s animation geeks know and can sing like it’s part of a sleeper agent code. “Devil’s Train” by The Lab Rats tells the story of the narrator’s grandfather who rode the train, and his own encounter with the Devil at the train tracks while tripping on acid. The whistle originally lures his grandfather in by screaming at night, “Follow me, follow me, I have something to show you.” While we don’t see the actual train, we see the Devil convince our narrator to “roll down these train tracks tonight.” The idea of the Devil’s train is such an interesting concept and a uniquely post-industrial and American idea. As we transition into a new industrial area, what will be the new mode of transportation and temptation for the Prince of Evil? My money’s on Facebook.

Williams, Hank. “The Devil's Train.” Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fh-_KzLNELk

The Lab Rats. “Devil's Train.” Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JtpHtuWnwQ

Pleased to meet you, Hope you guess my name

”Sympathy For The Devil” by the Rolling Stones is a banger of a song, but actually goes deeper in its lyrics which most people notice on their listen-throughs of the hit. The band makes both biblical and historical references in their verses, citing Lucifer as the cause for these events taking place. So I thought it would be fun to break down the lyrics and their references. Enjoy!

“I was round when Jesus Christ had his moment of doubt and pain.”: This is a reference to the story of Christ’s Agony in the garden of Gethsemane before the last supper, where he prays to his father about his upcoming fate of death.

“Made Damn sure the Pilate washed his hands and sealed his fate.”: This is a reference to Matthew 27:24 when Pontious Pilate refused to execute Jesus himself, and literally washed his hands in front of the crowd and left it to the mob.

“Killed Tsar and his ministers, Anastasia screamed in vain”: This references the murder of Tsar Nicholas Romanov II and his family during the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. The lyrics specifically name Anastasia Romanov, the Tsar’s youngest daughter.

“Held a general’s rank, when the blitzkrieg raged.”: This is a reference to the German bombing of London and other areas of England during WWII. The Germans used a technique known as blitzkrieg, directly translated to “lightning war”, which was quick hard attacks to disable an enemy over a short period of time.

“I watched with glee as your Kings and Queens fought for ten decades.”: This is undoubtedly referring to the 100 Years War that raged between England and France from 1337 to 1453.

“I shouted ‘Who killed the Kennedys?’ when after all it was you and me”: This was about the assassination of 35th US President John F. Kennedy by Lee Harvey Oswald.

The Rolling Stones. "Sympathy for the Devil.” Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/track/1Ud6moTC0KyXMq1Oxfien0

A Prince in Exile Here in Hell

The band Ghost BC has many songs in direct praise of the Lord of Darkness Lucifer, but their song “Majesty” is directly an infernal hymn. The song describes the beauty and power that Lucifer has, the fact he has descended from Heaven, and also describes the sinners that flock to the throne of the Devil as his subjects and worshippers. It is a solemn celebration of the Dark Prince, stating “Old one, Master. All beauty lies within you, your infernal Majesty.” It is a sinister and ethereal psalm to Lucifer, and a generally great song.

 Ghost BC. “Majesty.” Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/track/30ZhfyAmOmF6GN2i5fpVen

Brooooooo this is so cool, reminds me of junji ito’s work.

The Daughter