Wednesday, September 16, 2015

The Book of Giants in art

EXHIBITION IN MINNEAPOLIS: MICHAEL THOMSEN EXPLORES HIS TIES TO THE OCCULT THROUGH ART (SHEILA REGAN, City Pages).
Michael Thomsen's interest in secret societies, mythologies, and the occult stems from his grandfather, an auctioneer who belonged to the Blue Lodge of the Masonic Temple.

"I was really flipped out by that as a kid," Thomsen recalls.

When Warren (Barney) Thomsen, the Master Mason, passed away in the early 1990s, Michael Thomsen was given some of his jewelry and other items from the lodge. In recent years, he's researched the Masons and other secret groups.

"It all goes back to pre-religions," he says. "Religions came out of cults, and cults were secret societies of some sort."

For "Mystery School," Thomsen's solo show at Public Functionary, he not only dives into Masonic imagery, but also takes bits from the Bible, Greek and Roman mythology, and an assortment of esoteric narratives, including angel-descended mutant giants, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and third eyes that see beyond ordinary sight.

[...]
It seems the Enochic giants feature in one of his works:
While he's creating the work, Thomsen admits that he can sometimes get a little spooked by the imagery. "[The Dead Sea Scrolls' Book of Giants piece] kind of gets underneath my skin at certain points," he admits.
Unfortunately, I can't find an image of this piece. Such images of his work that I can find online look interesting.

Past posts relating to the Book of Giants are here and here and links