Witches and Wicked Bodies is enlightening about some very dark periods of European history. While looking at these images of witchery it is impossible not to reflect on the persecution of those tried as witches and the prevailing image of women as femmes fatales, which has consequences to this day.
It is surprising that this is the first major UK art exhibition on witchcraft, given the enduring fascination with the subject matter. The show largely deals with the changing perception of witches, which has been examined time and again in western art to reflect the political and religious context of the period.
We see the dilution over time from a sexually threatening sorceress making deals with the devil to today’s more family-friendly image of an old crone riding a broomstick. The result is an intriguing exploration of the demonisation of the female form.
There are six themed sections: Hideous Hags and Beautiful Witches; Unnatural Acts of Flying; Witches’ Sabbaths and Devilish Rituals; Unholy Trinities and the Weird Sisters of Macbeth; Magic Circles, Incantations and Raising the Dead; and The Persistence of Witches. The final section featuring modern artwork is made all the richer by understanding the context and history that informed it.
What is striking is the absence of male figures from the artworks. The men here are found on the labels, with witches and witchcraft interpreted through a solely male gaze. These artists see women as a corrupting force. Witches were often scapegoats for political troubles and represented the dangers of heresy.
Missed opportunity
A thought-provoking object, easily missed, is Malleus Maleficarum (The Hammer of the Witches). This late 15th-century book is often cited for paving the way for the witchhunts of the 16th and 17th centuries as it offered instructions on how to identify, try and punish witches.
One of the fundamental tenets of this book was that witches were women. While men were killed during witch trials, the majority of victims were female. This was because of the early Christian belief, attributed to the fall of Eve, that women were more susceptible to the temptation of the devil.
While the importance of this text is now revised as having influenced principally educated circles, the assertion that witches were female is significant and the book merited more attention in the exhibition.
Throughout the artworks there is a disturbing undercurrent of the dangers of women and the carnal desires that they arouse. Images of witches largely fall into two categories.
Firstly there are hideous old women with snakes entwined in their hair who eat babies, cause miscarriages and replace children with changelings. Their withered bodies represent their enduring heretical beliefs and demonstrate the deprivation of the light and beauty of the Christian faith, which is long since lost to them.
In contrast there are the beautiful nymphs who threaten men with desire and turn them into beasts. Female sexuality is portrayed as depraved, violent and associated with bestiality, death and dismemberment; from the beautiful young nudes surrounded by human bones, cadavers or demons to a haggard witch flying on a large phallus or kissing the devil’s backside.
Witch panic
While most of the exhibition covers European art in general, some works are particular to a Scottish context. The section on witches’ sabbaths includes an illustration of Robert Burns’s poem Tam o’ Shanter and there is an entire room dedicated to the Weird Sisters from Shakespeare’s Macbeth.
The introduction explains that Macbeth became popular at a time when sorcery would resonate with audiences. Scots king James VI (who later become James I of England) was a scholar of witchcraft and considered witches responsible for a storm at sea that threatened his return from Denmark with his new queen.
Many visitors miss the three books in this section, which is unfortunate as they each hint at the political and social context that gave rise to witchhunts during the reign of James VI.
The first book details news of the North Berwick witch trials, where several people were forced under torture to admit to a plot to kill the king. Reginald Scott, author of the second book, published in 1584, questioned the existence of witchcraft and asserted that those who confessed to be witches were suffering from delusions.
Scott’s was the first book on witchcraft written in English and was reportedly an inspiration for Macbeth. The third book, by James VI, refuted Scott’s ideas. While king of Scotland, James VI ordered all copies of Scott’s book to be destroyed. On becoming king of England, one of James’ first acts was to tighten witchcraft law.
Modern takes
The final section of the exhibition looks at the continuing fascination with this subject matter, which over the course of 500 years has become much more palatable.
There are some female perspectives on witches, with American photographer Cindy Sherman donning a prosthetic nose to inhabit the character herself and Brazilian-born artist Ana Maria Pacheco hinting at past perceptions of sexuality, with her witch dressed in a swimsuit.
Although the content is hugely interesting, the exhibition falls down on some fundamental aspects of the visitor experience. The font size on the object labels is too small, particularly given the low lighting required for the paper artworks on show. Large text labels are provided in booklet form but none of these were available in any of the rooms when I visited.
It would have been helpful to put the introductory panels near the entrance of each section so that this context could inform visitors’ appreciation of the artworks. There are a few chairs to carry around the galleries, but extra benches in the rooms would be welcome.
Lyndsey Mackay is the project curator (Curious) at St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art, Glasgow Museums
It is surprising that this is the first major UK art exhibition on witchcraft, given the enduring fascination with the subject matter. The show largely deals with the changing perception of witches, which has been examined time and again in western art to reflect the political and religious context of the period.
We see the dilution over time from a sexually threatening sorceress making deals with the devil to today’s more family-friendly image of an old crone riding a broomstick. The result is an intriguing exploration of the demonisation of the female form.
There are six themed sections: Hideous Hags and Beautiful Witches; Unnatural Acts of Flying; Witches’ Sabbaths and Devilish Rituals; Unholy Trinities and the Weird Sisters of Macbeth; Magic Circles, Incantations and Raising the Dead; and The Persistence of Witches. The final section featuring modern artwork is made all the richer by understanding the context and history that informed it.
What is striking is the absence of male figures from the artworks. The men here are found on the labels, with witches and witchcraft interpreted through a solely male gaze. These artists see women as a corrupting force. Witches were often scapegoats for political troubles and represented the dangers of heresy.
Missed opportunity
A thought-provoking object, easily missed, is Malleus Maleficarum (The Hammer of the Witches). This late 15th-century book is often cited for paving the way for the witchhunts of the 16th and 17th centuries as it offered instructions on how to identify, try and punish witches.
One of the fundamental tenets of this book was that witches were women. While men were killed during witch trials, the majority of victims were female. This was because of the early Christian belief, attributed to the fall of Eve, that women were more susceptible to the temptation of the devil.
While the importance of this text is now revised as having influenced principally educated circles, the assertion that witches were female is significant and the book merited more attention in the exhibition.
Throughout the artworks there is a disturbing undercurrent of the dangers of women and the carnal desires that they arouse. Images of witches largely fall into two categories.
Firstly there are hideous old women with snakes entwined in their hair who eat babies, cause miscarriages and replace children with changelings. Their withered bodies represent their enduring heretical beliefs and demonstrate the deprivation of the light and beauty of the Christian faith, which is long since lost to them.
In contrast there are the beautiful nymphs who threaten men with desire and turn them into beasts. Female sexuality is portrayed as depraved, violent and associated with bestiality, death and dismemberment; from the beautiful young nudes surrounded by human bones, cadavers or demons to a haggard witch flying on a large phallus or kissing the devil’s backside.
Witch panic
While most of the exhibition covers European art in general, some works are particular to a Scottish context. The section on witches’ sabbaths includes an illustration of Robert Burns’s poem Tam o’ Shanter and there is an entire room dedicated to the Weird Sisters from Shakespeare’s Macbeth.
The introduction explains that Macbeth became popular at a time when sorcery would resonate with audiences. Scots king James VI (who later become James I of England) was a scholar of witchcraft and considered witches responsible for a storm at sea that threatened his return from Denmark with his new queen.
Many visitors miss the three books in this section, which is unfortunate as they each hint at the political and social context that gave rise to witchhunts during the reign of James VI.
The first book details news of the North Berwick witch trials, where several people were forced under torture to admit to a plot to kill the king. Reginald Scott, author of the second book, published in 1584, questioned the existence of witchcraft and asserted that those who confessed to be witches were suffering from delusions.
Scott’s was the first book on witchcraft written in English and was reportedly an inspiration for Macbeth. The third book, by James VI, refuted Scott’s ideas. While king of Scotland, James VI ordered all copies of Scott’s book to be destroyed. On becoming king of England, one of James’ first acts was to tighten witchcraft law.
Modern takes
The final section of the exhibition looks at the continuing fascination with this subject matter, which over the course of 500 years has become much more palatable.
There are some female perspectives on witches, with American photographer Cindy Sherman donning a prosthetic nose to inhabit the character herself and Brazilian-born artist Ana Maria Pacheco hinting at past perceptions of sexuality, with her witch dressed in a swimsuit.
Although the content is hugely interesting, the exhibition falls down on some fundamental aspects of the visitor experience. The font size on the object labels is too small, particularly given the low lighting required for the paper artworks on show. Large text labels are provided in booklet form but none of these were available in any of the rooms when I visited.
It would have been helpful to put the introductory panels near the entrance of each section so that this context could inform visitors’ appreciation of the artworks. There are a few chairs to carry around the galleries, but extra benches in the rooms would be welcome.
Lyndsey Mackay is the project curator (Curious) at St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art, Glasgow Museums
Project data
- Cost undisclosed
- Partner British Museum
- Curator Deanna Petherbridge; NGS
- Exhibition ends 3 November
