Public Research Talk: A Magic Dwells: Occulture in Contemporary Art, with Marco Pasi
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Fifteen years ago, I began to notice the conspicuous presence of esoteric motifs in contemporary art. At first, I was intrigued but also surprised, assuming this was only a passing trend. Over time, however, I came to realize that the phenomenon was more significant and deserving of attention than I had initially thought.
The influence of esotericism on modern art—roughly up to the end of the Second World War—has been the subject of serious scholarly research since at least the 1960s. Yet it soon became clear to me that scholars of esotericism and art historians alike were paying insufficient attention to its role in contemporary art.
In this lecture, I will share my findings and reflections on this phenomenon, which I believe is essential to understanding the place of esotericism in our societies today. Contemporary art holds considerable cultural and social influence, and examining its relationship with…
Programming Series: Transcendence and Transformation. Contact: Laurie D. Sedgwick, CSWR, Events Coordinator
ldsedgwick@hds.harvard.edu.
Monday, December 1, 2025, 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM.
Common Room, CSWR, 42 Francis Ave. Cambridge, MA.
For more info visit cswr.hds.harvard.edu. Reading Group: Transcendentalism—Mystics, Misfits, Rogues, and Dissidents
Programming Series: Transcendence and Transformation. Contact: Laurie D. Sedgwick, CSWR Events Coordinator
ldsedgwick@hds.harvard.edu.
Tuesday, December 2, 2025, 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
Conference Room, CSWR, 42 Francis Ave. Cambridge, MA 02138.
Gnoseologies: Esoteric identities: Helena P. Blavatsky as a woman philosopher? With Tim Rudbøg
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What criteria decide philosophical legitimacy? What is the role of women philosophers in them? In this conversation, Tim Rudbøg will consider the figure of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and, through intertextual analysis, show that Blavatsky actively engaged with philosophical discourse, developing perspectives on being, consciousness, space, and time in conversation with thinkers such as Kant, Fichte, Hegel, and Spencer. While Blavatsky regarded her own work as philosophical, her conception of authentic philosophy diverged from that of many contemporaries. Rudbøg contends that esoteric identities are now easily pinned down, but that Blavatsky merits recognition as a philosopher in her own right, while simultaneously exceeding that category.
TIM RUDBØG, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Study of Religions at the University of Copenhagen, where he also serves as Head of Education for the Study of Religions and directs the Copenhagen Centre for…
Programming Series: Gnoseologies. Contact: Laurie D. Sedgwick, CSWR Events Coordinator
ldsedgwick@hds.harvard.edu.
Wednesday, December 10, 2025, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM.
Zoom.
For more info visit cswr.hds.harvard.edu.