2-week online class via Zoom
Wednesday, January 15 and 22, 2025
7 – 9 pm ET
$75 Paid Patreon Members / $95 General Admission

PLEASE NOTE: All classes will also be recorded for students who cannot attend live

This two-part course examines the advent and development of emblem books and their importance in understanding alchemical texts and images as found in Splendor Solis and Atalanta Fugiens.

The 16th-century emblem is an ethical/moral/spiritual work intended for instruction and contemplation. The emblem is composed of an enigmatic image, often drawn from myth and fable, along with a brief text or poem. Together these are then interpreted according to three or four levels of meaning. The dynamic interplay among image, text, and interpretation leads the reader to potentially new insights along their spiritual journey. Understanding the dynamic of how meaning is generated from such a strategy will provide insight into the meaning of an alchemical text.

The first class, after a brief overview of the art of memory, will outline some of the early practices of reading and text marking for purposes of memorization and composition. These practices are the seeds of the illuminated manuscript and are involved in developing the emblem.

The second class will examine the impact of The Hieroglyphics of Horapollo, a Greek text written by an Egyptian priest purported to interpret the meaning of hieroglyphics. This work, along with the Neoplatonic writings and translations by Marsilio Ficino, had a tremendous impact on Renaissance artists like Durer.

This course will be of interest to anyone working with the interplay of image/text and meaning.

This is a stand-alone course, but it was designed as background for the following course on the Splendor Solis.

Brian Cotnoir is an alchemist, artist, and award-winning filmmaker. A contributor to Frater Albertus’ Parachemy, he is also the author of a series of Alchemy Zines. His books include Alchemy: The Poetry of Matter (2017), Practical Alchemy: A Guide to the Great Work, Alchemical Meditations, and the Emerald Tablet, his translations of and commentary on, the earliest Arabic and Latin versions of this seminal text. And most recently, On Alchemy: Essential Practices and Making Art as Alchemy.

He has presented workshops and seminars around the world on various aspects of alchemical theory and practice based on his research.His film work has been screened at Museum of Modern Art, Sundance Film Festival, HBO, PBS and other international venues.

Khepri Press, launched in 2014 with the publication of the Emerald Tablet, is the vehicle and portal for his alchemical work.