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Bint Al-Shalabiya
Bint is an interdisciplinary folk artist, witch-mage and experimental musician exploring contemporary applications of traditional esoteric + cultural technologies. Her most recent work uses folk crafts, sound and astrological magic to create multimedia talisman installations. Across all mediums, her work heavily incorporates motifs, methods and materia informed by early childhood training in Islamic art as well as her Egyptian, South Asian and Moorish ancestries. Bint is also founder and podcast host of the Barzakh, a collective aimed at the education and reclamation of Islam’s rich occult heritage.
McCalla Ann
An avid student of the occult, McCalla Ann sparks conversations through her tarot readings, occult education, art, and poetry . She works with her clients and students to explore magic, and how cognition, psychology, and philosophy affect our daily lives. McCalla has an extensive background in Kabbalistic studies, and has degrees in both Biblical Study as well as Buddhist Philosophy. McCalla's current specialty is the promotion of Ashera worship, as well as a deep an unabashed love for any Hieros Gamos tradition and Bridal Mysticism.
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Vex Blòðstjarna
Vex Blòðstjarna has been a long-time esoteric practitioner and hermit, focusing on totemic animal spirits and the Northern mysteries. His practice ties indigenous animism from his surroundings and from familial roots of Scandinavian hunting rituals. Vex is a Mead Brewer, distiller, aspiring herbalist, wild crafter. Vex is an artist of the bones, flesh, roots and flowers of the animal and plant spirits that he venerates, as well as a crafter of Neolithic stone tools. Vex likes fire, exploring chthonic and hidden places (for goblin treasure) and enjoying the company of his four-legged companions.
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Meet the 2024 Salem Fest - Summer Agora Presenters
Dr. Jeremy Bechelli
Dr. Jeremy Bechelli is an accomplished scholar and occult practitioner who seamlessly bridges the realms of science and magic. With a Ph.D. in pathology from the University of Texas Medical Branch and an M.S. in microbiology from the University of Rochester, Dr. Bechelli currently studies tick-borne infectious diseases and endothelial pathobiology. Alongside his scientific pursuits, he is a dedicated student of European folk magic, particularly interested in the traditional witch-lore and practices of the British Isles. He works extensively within the Green Arte and studies occult herbalism, folk medicine, ethnobotany, and phytochemistry. As the owner of Phytognosis, a business specializing in plant-based spirituality, incense, resins, and botanical curios, Dr. Bechelli brings a unique perspective grounded in rigorous scientific inquiry and deep respect for ancient traditions. Through his work, he aims to illuminate the profound wisdom inherent in the natural world and foster a greater understanding of the sacred plants that have shaped human spirituality for generations.
Rebecca Beyer
Rebecca Beyer is the woman behind the Blood and Spicebush School of Old Craft. She lives in the mountains of Western North Carolina, where she live on a rural community owned land project and teaches traditional witchcraft, foraging, and Appalachian folk medicine. She has written multiple books and love to share about Appalachian plantlore and folkmagic on her blog, www.bloodandspicebush.com
Kamden S. Cornell
Kamden Cornell lives in Albuquerque, NM where they run a small witchcraft business. They are the author of Ars Granorum, On Needles and Pins, and a newly published work called The Tameless Path: Unleashing the Power of Invasive Plants in Witchcraft".
Jesse Hathaway Diaz
Jesse Hathaway Diaz is a folklorist, artist, performer and independent scholar with a Masters in Performance Studies from NYU. With initiations in several forms of witchcraft from Europe and the Americas, he is also a lifelong student of Mexican curanderismo, an
initiated priest of Obatalá in the Lucumí Orisha tradition, and a Tatá Quimbanda. He co-hosts an occult themed podcast called ‘Radio Free Golgotha’, and co-edits the ‘Folk Necromancy in Transmission’ imprint through Revelore Press. For the better part of two decades, he has
been involved with Theatre Group Dzieci, a New York based experimental theatre ensemble which explores theatre and ritual as a way, blending
service with self-exploration and performance. Dividing his time
between the Bronx and a farm in the Hudson Valley, his artistic and written work navigate the world-as-magic through exploring orality and
transmission, decolonialism, ritual theory and praxis, herbalism and healing modalities through private study, apprenticeship, and community involvement.
Dr James Dotson
J.W. Dotson MD (@iatromantis) is an independent scholar fascinated by scent sorcery, cultural and anthropological olfaction studies, ethnobotany, medical astrology and archaic medicine, astrolatry, astrological magic and remediation. He has presented several esoteric fragrance lectures as part of the The Scent and Society series at the Institute for Art and Olfaction in Los Angeles. He is currently an instructor at The Celestial Arts Education Library (caeli.institute).
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Phoebe Hildegard Finch
Phoebe Hildegard Finch is a traditionally trained conjurer, card reader, and writer. Originally brought to earth after a series of baleful magical experiments, she currently resides in Denton, Texas as the live-in apprentice of Professor Charles Porterfield. A lifelong herbalist, her work with plants is the loamy heart of her craft, anchoring the arcane in the physical.
Austin Fuller
Austin Fuller Austin Fuller is a Folk Witch living in the pine Flats of west-Central Florida, amongst the sea, swamp, and forest. A perfumer, conjuror, diviner, and artist, Austin traffics with spirits at the crossroads, intersecting witchcraft and art. They are the sole operator of BanxBramble on Instagram and banexbramble.com and a cohost on Southern Bramble: A Podcast of Crooked Ways. Austin explores magic and witchcraft through traditional and practical means.
Amanda Yates Garcia
Amanda Yates Garcia is a writer, witch, the Oracle of Los Angeles, and is currently attaining a PhD in the World Arts and Culture department at UCLA. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, The LA Times, The SF Chronicle, The London Times, CNN, BRAVO, as well as a viral appearance on FOX. She has led rituals, classes and workshops on magic and witchcraft at UCLA, UC Irvine, MOCA, The Hammer Museum, LACMA, The Getty and many other venues. Amanda hosts monthly moon rituals online, and the popular Between the Worlds podcast, which looks at the Western Mystery traditions through a mythopoetic lens. Her book, Initiated: Memoir of a Witch, received a starred review from Kirkus and Publisher's Weekly and has been translated into six languages.
Brother Yona Glickman
Yona Glickman is a conjureman, cartomancer and teacher of Hoodoo & rootwork. Born in a family deeply rooted in spirituality and folk magic allowed him to nurture his natural “gift” & relationship with the spirit realm. Itis the diversity in his mentorship as well as his personal life experiences that gives him a well-rounded and practical perspective to his spiritual workings. As an approachable,“every day man” he prides himself on using the old time tradition of Hoodoo to find solutions for modern day problems. He is highly skilled and well-versed in candle rituals, biblical magic, herbs, curios and creating handcrafted spiritual products. As One ofthe legacy students of Professor Charles Porterfield, promoting strength in others and keeping the tradition alive is his mission. Contact him at (786)586-9215 or @propheticsoulguideinc on instagram.
Meredith Graves
Meredith Graves is a multimedia artist and writer based in Brooklyn, NY. Her work has spanned disciplines and genres ranging from experimental hardcore to material archaeology, broadcast television to occultural economics, all supported by her personal magical practice of over 20 years. Formerly the anchor of MTV News and an Outreach Director at Kickstarter, Graves is currently eschewing corporate employment in favor of a full-time art practice focused on extending her research into the magical orders and fashions of the 1890s, for which she’ll be attending various residencies and retreats in the coming year.
Kris Gurky
Kris Gurky is a natural intuitive and magickal herbal practitioner with Lithuanian and Celtic roots. She teaches herbalism, tarot, and intuitive development workshops worldwide. She is the proprietress of Dark Moon & Co., and creatrix of the Witch City Tarot Gathering. Kris earned an M.B.A. at Boston University, an M.S. in Herbal Medicine at the American College of Healthcare Sciences in Portland Oregon, and completed an herbalism apprenticeship at the Boston School of Herbal Studies.
J.M. Hamade
J.M. Hamade (starnightdwell) (he/they) is an interdisciplinary artist, diviner, writer and educator residing in New York City. Focusing on the aesthetics of esoterica and the occult, they’re work bridges contemporary artistic practice with archaic forms of knowing. Various species of ‘image magic,’ both general and historical, are explored through like practices of astrology, star-lore collecting, and observation of celestial phenomena. Similarly, the investigation and experimental application of talismanic art forms is at the forefront of their work.
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Kadmus
Kadmus is a professor of philosophy, a writer, teacher, practicing occultists and dedicated pagan. He has taught classes for every year of the Salem Witchcraft and Folklore Festival as well as for the Cauldron Black and the Astro Magia astrological magic conference. His new book, “Learning from Legendary Practitioners: A Necromantic Journey into History, Myth, and the Practice of Magic” will be published by Hadean Press and his previous book "True to the Earth: Pagan Political Theology" was recently released in a second edition.
Kelden
Kelden is a witch, folklorist, and mental health practitioner. He is the author of The Crooked Path: An Introduction to Traditional Witchcraft, The Witches’ Sabbath: An Exploration of History, Folklore, and Modern Practice, and All The, Witches: Folktales & Rhymes. When not researching and writing,Kelden enjoys life in his tiny house in the woods, reading, hiking, growing poisonous herbs, and playing ukulele. You can find more about Kelden at keldenmercury.wordpress.com
Loo Ledesma
Loo is the founder of The Mile High Conjure Gala, a Santa Muerte Devotee & practitioner of Conjure, and has a deep relationship with the spirit world and ancestral realms. She approaches the work from the Conjure tradition and a close open relationship with the dead. Loo walks her spiritual path comfortably with less freely talked about workings and brings deep knowledge and experience of the strange and beautiful wisdom to her teachings and goods. She is a legacy student of Conjure Man Professor Charles Porterfield. She has learned from and sits at the table with some of the most sought after teachers and elders in Conjure.
Emily Lilly
Emily Lilly is an artist and a practicing seiðkona. Growing up on a farm in New Hampshire, Emily has spent their entire life interacting with the spirit realm. They began their study of magic at age 15 and devoted themselves to the path of their ancestors at age 18. They have been studying and practicing seiðr for three years through lived experience and rigorous academic study. Day-to-day, Emily can be found in their studio creating ritually-crafted artwork from ethically sourced animal remains for their business ULVWITCH.
Sterling Moon
Sterling Moon is a fulltime, heels-on-the-ground, tarot reader, psychic medium, folk magician, animal communicator, published author, podcaster, and an educator on the mystical and strange. She is the author of Talking to Spirits: A Modern Medium’s Practical Advice for Spirit Communication, which was published by Llewelyn Books in early 2023. Sterling has been working with clients and teaching professionally since 2013. She started a school called the Sterling Moon Divination Academy in 2021 and has been a teacher with Ritualcravt School since 2017. Sterling spent almost 20 years as a professional advocate for victims and survivors of crime in Wyoming, Minnesota, and Colorado. You can keep up with Sterling at SterlingMoonTarot.com.
Nay Noordmans
Inspired by the stories of her sea-faring elders, Nay has been a lifelong student of folk magic as well as a variety of esoteric traditions. While she may be best known for her love and copious research on household spirits, this passion is rivaled by the tales of elves, dwarfs, and faeries she heard as a child. She is delighted to share the practical and magical approaches from yesteryear regarding the afflictions caused by the Othersas in addition to some of her biggest folkloric obsessions with you all.
Dr Paul E. Patton
​Dr. Paul E. Patton holds a PhD from The Ohio State University in Anthropology with a focus on prehistoric populations and paleoethnobotany. He holds a Masters of Science in Environmental Studies and a BA in Classical Civilizations and Anthropology. Patton has conducted fieldwork and research in eastern Africa, Greece, parts of South America, and much of Eastern North America, particularly Appalachia. Patton has numerous publications in regional, national and international journals and books focusing on paleoethnobotany and the domestication of plants. In 2021, Patton co-founded the Temple of Dionysos. His current project is a volume on Orphic reconstructionism and its associated chthonic deities.
Professor Charles Porterfield
​Professor Charles Porterfield is an old-fashioned, no-nonsense, Old Testament reader and rootworker. He is the co-author of Hoodoo Bible Magic: Sacred Secrets of Scriptural Sorcery, and author of A Deck of Spells: Hoodoo Playing Card Magic in Rootwork and Conjure and The Sporting Life: How to Help Yourself with Hoodoo from the Streets to the Sheets. He writes, teaches, and lectures on hoodoo and conjure to help preserve and pass on the roots of the work as well as consults, prescribes, and divines work for those in need. He currently lives in Denton, Texas with his wife, legacy student, one cat, and a dead dog.
Sasha Ravitch
Sasha Ravitch spends her days as a consultant-practitioner and professional writer. She regularly appears for podcasts and conferences, having twice been a keynote speaker for AstroMagia, as well as a regular lecturer for the Salem Witchcraft & Folklore Festival, and recently in Birmingham at the Magickal Women’s Conference on experimental Shakespearean Witchcraft. She has been published by Hadean Press and soon Revelore Press for a forthcoming book on Constellation Hydra, co-authored with her dear friend and colleague, Maeg Keane. Ravitch spends her free time spinning starlight and constellating desire from the floor of the ocean or a sunny rock in the river, and reading and writing weird worlds and even stranger spirits into existence.
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Lex Ritchie
Lex Ritchie is a queer witch, mystic, and writer devoted reweaving sacred and reciprocal relationship. Their work is spirit-led and historically informed, with a particular focus on ancestral healing, queer spiritualities, and the Orphic tradition. Their work been featured in Yahoo! News and Huffington Post, as well as many podcasts and essay collections. In their free time, they can be found crafting fiber art, singing bawdy songs, and worshiping Hermes and Dionysus in public forests.
David Salisbury
David Salisbury is a Baltimore/DC based witch with 25 years of experience and an initiate of the Anderson Feri tradition of witchcraft as well as the O.T.O. As an author of multiple books on the magical arts, David teaches both privately and at festivals and conferences around the country. His work primarily focuses on magic as a subversive act meant to unshackle our power and presence from the oppressive forces of society.
Kim Schwenk
Kim Schwenk, is an occult scholar, rare book librarian, and an antiquarian bookseller with Lux Mentis, Booksellers. She has a subject specialization in North American, Latin American, and European witchcraft history, early printed occult texts, demonaltry, and cunning folk magic using plants and objects. She is an herbalist with Of Oak and Ash Apothecary, studying bioregional flora of the Pennsylvania Dutch and their magical uses. She is currently teaming with an artist in Norway, Katz Plunkett, to create an indie "oracle" deck, titled "Daemonium hortus".
Vincent V. St. Roch
Vincent V. St. Roch is a diviner living in Brooklyn. He is the author of three books of poetry.
Peter Von Leykamm
Peter Von Leykamm has practiced qigong and related forms of energy work for over 20 years, including 5 years spent living in Beijing as a closed-door disciple of the Internal Chinese Martial Arts. He is a necromancer, and practitioner of planetary grimoire magick, cartomancy, and a variety of other occult disciplines. He currently lives in Brooklyn. Vincent V. Saint-Roch is a bibliomancer, necromancer, practitioner of planetary grimoire magic, cartomancer, and saint enthusiast. He has interviewed magical workers and written about magic for roughly a decade, and is better known under other names.
Jamie Waggoner
Jamie Waggoner (she/her) is a Pagan priestess, philosopher, author, and teacher with 25+ years of study and practice. Her work centers around eclectic theurgic and folk magic, mythology, oracular traditions, trance arts, and liminal rites. She is the author of Hades: Myth, Magic, and Modern Devotion (Llewellyn, 2024). In addition to her independent projects, Jamie is a cofounder and teacher for Way of the Weaver, an inclusive program of magical inquiry, social justice, and community building. She has been a devotee of Hades since 2016.
For more information on attending The Summer Agora In-Person click HERE
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