When the spirit calls

In 2023 I visited Paris for the first (and hopefully not the last!) time and got to spend a week exploring the city and its museums. My favorite exhibit was “Mediumistic Women, Les Femmes Médiumniques, Art Brut” at the Center Pompidou, artwork created by women under the guidance of spirits!
The Spiritualism Movement of the mid to late 1800’s was the environment from which the first of these unusual works of art emerged. Along with the work of other self taught artists this kind of art was largely ignored until the 1940’s when the French artist Jean Dubuffet championed it as “Art Brut,” or raw art. 

Georgiana Houghton, Untitled, 1867, gouache, colored pencil, felt tipped pen, ink on paper

At the entrance to the exhibition was this “Spirit Drawing” by the British visionary artist Georgiana Houghton. Georgiana Houghton (1814-1888) became a spiritual medium after attending a seance in 1859 and created over 150 drawings with the guidance of a spirit called “Lenny” as well as the spirits of master painters and 70 archangels. Houghton held a solo exhibition at the New British Gallery in 1871, and though it was not a financial or critical success, it was well attended and influential. 

Madge Gill, Untitled, ink on paper, circa 1949

Madge Gill (1882-1961) was another British artist, spiritual medium as well as a practicing astrologer. Gill’s drawings were made in collaboration with the spirit Myrninerest. She lead a life filled with tragic events, and one art critic attributed her artistic output as her way of dealing with her trauma. (Is this really any different from the familiar trope of the "tortured artist?") Gill was also a prodigious knitter, embroiderer and pianist, all practices that echo the patterned markings in her intricate ​drawings.

Miloslava Ratsingerova, Untitled, 1935-1950, graphite lead on paper

Czech artist Miloslava Ratsingerova (1904-1990) acquired the gift of clairvoyance following a chance encounter on the street. A complete stranger approached her and said, “I am passing the White Book to you.”  Soon after Ratsingerova began to create these portrait drawings of women as well as write poetry and philosophy. 

Miloslava Ratsingerova, Untitled, 1935-1950, graphite lead on paper

Consuelo Gonzalez Amezcua, Untitled, September 20, 1966, black ink, ballpoint pen and white highlights on brown paper.

The Mexican born American artist Consuelo Gonzalez Amezcua (1903-1975) created what she referred to as “mental drawings.” These images appeared fully formed in her mind after which she would spend days drawing tirelessly until she had committed the image to paper. After she finished each piece she would turn the artwork over and meditate in gratitude for the gift of creativity. There are no indications that she believed herself to be working directly with spirits, but her work is highly intuitive and mystical.

Gerturde Morgan, Father, Bride and Son, guache on paper, date unknown

Sister Gertrude Morgan (1900- 1980) was an African American preacher, poet, painter and musician who first followed a call from the voice of God to become a street preacher. Several decades later the Lord instructed her to become a painter and she created artwork to illustrate her sermons. She was discovered by art dealer Larry Borenstein in the early 1960’s and found fans and collectors in the New York art world including Andy Warhol. In 1973, at the peak of her popularity, God instructed Sister Gertrude to give up painting and dedicate herself to preaching and poetry. 

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In researching this post I encountered more than a few art critics who try to debunk the spiritual connections of the “Mediumistic Women” artists. The wall text in the exhibit proposed that the women claimed to be channeling spirits as a way to be artists in a world that didn’t accept women artists. That seems a bit far fetched. Another author I read suggested that the women were just misinterpreting the creative “zen” state. Really??
Why can’t we just let them speak for themselves?
“Believe Mediumistic Women!”