"The Oracle's Eye" is the third exhibition in a series that spawned from Stephen Romano's 2019 "Transmutations: Witches, Healers and Oracles" at Cleveland's Buckland Museum of Witchcraft. The first follow-up exhibition was staged at the WYRD WAR Gallery in Portland OR entitled "The Witches Eye: The Camera as Occult Device" and featured the art of William Mortensen alongside Britney Rose Luciani, Matthew Dutton, Edward Colver, and Lorena Torres Martell. Most recently, the second installment was mounted at GalleryX in Dublin entitled "The Shamanic Eye" and featured along with William Mortensen such diverse work as Chris Stein's (of Blondie) photographs of Debbie Harry stylized by H.R. Giger, Edward Colver's photographs of Christian Death's original founder Rozz Williams, Cormac Figgis' stunning portraits of Iggy Pop, Brittany Rose Luciani's re-creation of Mortensen's "The High Priestess" from 1924. A selection of these works will be infused in the upcoming exhibition to give New York audiences an opportunity to experience them firsthand, along with so much more..

An oracle is someone who is said to offer discernment, sage advice, or prophetic predictions—precognition of the future, in particular, which is said to be inspired by divine sources. In biblical references, a message from God to humanity is typically in response to a prayer for direction. When carried out using occult methods, it is a type of divination. The term "oracle" originates from the Latin verb "to speak," ōrāre, and correctly describes the act of a priest or priestess making a prediction. In broader usage, the term "oracle" can also apply to the location of the oracle as well as the oracular utterances themselves, which are known in Greek as "khrēsmoí". Oracles were believed to be windows through which the gods might communicate with humans directly. They were not like seers, who deciphered messages from the gods through animal entrails, bird signals, and other means. The oracles of Dione and Zeus at Dodona in Epirus, as well as Pythia, the priestess of Apollo at Delphi, were the most significant in Greek antiquity. Other Apollo oracles may be found on the Anatolian coast at Didyma and Mallus, in the Peloponnese at Corinth and Bassae, and in the Aegean Sea at the islands of Delos and Aegina. The Sibylline Oracles are a collection of prophecies attributed to the Sibyls, prophetesses who revealed divine truths when in a frantic condition, and written in Greek hexameters. With this in mind, In 2019, Stephen Romano Gallery presented a tribute exhibition to William Mortensen entitled "William Mortensen and the Coven of the Sibylline". This exhibition is grounded in the concepts perpetuated in that exhibition, as well as the aforementioned "Transmutations" exhibition.

Having said that, the exhibition expands the parameters of consideration of it's theme, sometimes playfully, and in other instances unnervingly.

The association between artists and the occult has been a consistent thread throughout the history of art. It's no surprise that many artists have been drawn to the mysterious and mystical, finding inspiration in the unknown. From ancient civilizations to modern times, the power of the occult has captivated the imagination of artists, leading them to create some of the most haunting and unforgettable works of art, either as foretellers of fantastical utopian futures or as vehement end-of-the-world prophets. Although none of the artists in this show consider themselves to be soothsayers or oracles, nonetheless, as the veils that divide the artist from the real substance of the world we live in become thinner, through their creative process, artists gain access to metaphysical wisdom. When spiritual knowledge is cathartically conveyed in the artist's work, it can, in the best of instances, serve as affirmation for seekers longing for deeper spiritual awareness and empowerment.

14BC is an art gallery connecting and exhibiting artists, researchers, and community members near and far. The gallery is located at 626 E 14th St, New York, NY 10009 and is open Thursday through Saturday 3 pm - 8pm.

Please contact Stephen Romano at romanostephen@gmail.com for further information and visuals.

*some images are posted as examples of the artist's oeuvre and are not necessarily in this exhibition. 

EXHIBITION INSTALLATION SHOTS.

'

For further information and visuals, please contact

Stephen Romano

romanostephen@gmail.com

www.romanoart.com