Poster by Ila Rose.

This year’s poster features the modern witch. For too long the witch has been represented as an evil woman, concocting potions to enact her ill will upon others. Where do you think this bad witch symbol comes from? Why does a powerful woman pose a threat?

Ancient elder-women of tribes across the globe concocted medicines in their “cauldrons” to heal and care for their communities. Think of your grandmother — or favorite old woman — at work in her kitchen, excited to feed you and to love and nurture you. Why is it that one of our most prominent symbols of an old woman mixing medicinal magic has been turned into something creepy and demonic?

The playful crone in this image beckons you to ask yourself these questions. She holds the mask of an owl to remind you of her wisdom and to show that she is unafraid of the dark places and transmutes them to the light. She offers the peach as though it is the new fruit of knowledge. She asks the viewer to join her in rewriting our story. She calls you to join in a rich and vibrant celebration and community that honors the wisdom and healing powers of the witch.

About The Artist

Ila Rose is an artist currently working in Oregon and hailing from Eugene.

Rose is inspired and humbled by those who have formed close relationships with the earth. Instances of this human-environment interconnection are rich with shared symbolism. Symbols that echo throughout time and space have instinctually landed them selves in her art. She finds her work guides her rather than the other way around. Science is important and fascinating to Rose however she is not a disbeliever in the magic that lingers in that which is unknown and unprovable. The vastness of what lies beyond our understanding is a space in which she yearns to journey, a black abyss she aches to swim. She sees her canvas as the abyss.

facebook: /ilaroseart

Instagram: @ilaviews

13 1/2″ x 22″