How Queer Artists used ART SPELLS for liberation for 100+ years

Welcome to Season 2 of Your Art Is A Spell. In this premiere episode, we introduce the concept of Tactical Magic, the use of ritual, art, and ancient wisdom as tools for survival and agency in difficult times. Join me on a journey to the Palm Springs Art Museum for the groundbreaking exhibition, Queer Arcana: Art, Magic & Spirit. Spanning over a century of work from 1909 to 2026, this show reveals how queer, trans, and gender-expansive artists have long used the esoteric to build worlds where they were once excluded. From the tarot of Rachel Pollack to my own social practice ritual, Give Us Home Spider, we look at how art functions not just as decoration, but as a technology of the spirit and a powerful act of political resistance. Video Chapters 00:00 – Welcome to Your Art Is A Spell Season 2 00:30 – Reclaiming Sovereignty & Agency in Difficult Times 01:05 – Artist Residency in Berlin: The Human Machine 01:40 – Traveling to Palm Springs: Queer Arcana Exhibition 03:30 – Arrival at Palm Springs Art Museum 04:15 – What is Tactical Magic? Defining the Theme 05:15 – Magic as Resistance: Survival at the Margins 07:10 – Inside the Queer Arcana Exhibition: Art, Magic & Spirit 08:08 – Art as Spellcraft: A Technology of the Spirit 09:27 – The Q+ Art Initiative at Palm Springs Art Museum 10:00 – The Six Portals of Queer Arcana (Section Walkthrough) 11:53 – "Give Us Home Spider": My Social Practice Ritual (2017) 13:00 – Why Queer People Turn to Divination & Ritual 14:13 – Visionary Artists: Candice Lin & Hilma’s Ghost 15:15 – Honoring Queer Lineages: Clarity Haynes & Agnes Pelton 16:00 – Walter Mercado & Nao Bustamante: Latinx Astrological Legacies 16:18 – Remembering Ancestors: Genesis P-Orridge & Nancy Azara 16:50 – The Desert as a Place of Vision & Sanctuary 18:18 – Honoring Rachel Pollack & Austin Osman Spare 19:12 – Closing: Your Art is a Spell Explore the Exhibition: Queer Arcana at Palm Springs Art Museum: https://www.psmuseum.org/exhibitions/... The Q+ Art Initiative: https://www.psmuseum.org/art/q-plus-art The artists included in this exhibition are: Carlos Alfonzo, Steven Arnold, Nancy Azara, Judy Baca, Elijah Burgher, Nao Bustamante, Cameron, Tee Corrine, Jayne County, Frances Salomé España, Edgar Fabián Frías, Russell FitzGerald, Sergio Hernández Francés, Hilma's Ghost, Tamara Gonzales, Marsden Hartley, Sadao Hasegawa, Richard Hawkins, Clarity Haynes, Joseph Liatela, Candice Lin, Fred Lonidier, Billie Luisi-Potts, Daniel Correa Mejía, Mundo Meza, Genesis P-Orridge, Agnes Pelton, Naudline Pierre, Rachel Pollack, Eric-Paul Riege To Watch / Listen to More Episodes from Your Art Is A Spell    • Your Art Is A Spell   To send me a voice note https://www.speakpipe.com/YouArtIsASpell To learn more about me and my art www.yourartisaspell.com To learn about my private practice Therapy With Edgar www.therapywithedgar.com 💌 Sign up for my newsletter: https://www.edgarfabianfrias.org/sign... 🕊️ Follow Me on BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/edgarfabianf... 🌐 Follow Me on Instagram   / edgarfabianfrias   More Videos From Me 🎨 Artist Tips and Support    • Artistic Advancement: Tips & Tools for Pro...   🖼️ Art Videos:    • Giant Rainbow Art Shines Over the City!   🔮 Tarot and Oracle Deck Reviews    • Unboxing the Mysterious Itinéraires Fantôm...   🎤 Interviews    • Interviews & Conversations with Edgar Fabi...   🤳🏼 Watch my VLOGs    • VLOGs   🎵 Live Music Videos    • Live Music Filmed by Edgar Fabián Frías   🇲🇽 Videos en Español    • Vídeos en Español   Artworks used in thumbnail are by Devan Shimoyama, Hilma's Ghost, and me!