The Occult Harry Smith

      

By Peter Valente

A Diverse Collection of Writing by and About Mystic Artist Harry Smith   “Alchemist, magician, filmmaker, artist, mystic, anthropologist, collector, rebel, eternal omnivore, and 20th century Renaissance man, Harry Smith was many things to many people and this outstanding collection of lovingly written testimonies pays tribute to Harry with wit, respect, love, and laser-like precision. It is absolutely impossible to forget any interaction you had with Harry—and the beautiful tales in this remarkably readable and heartfelt book will have you awestruck, laughing out loud, and hungry for more. Perhaps the best collection of writings about one of the most enigmatic and fascinating figures the world has ever known.” —John Zorn, American composer Harry Smith (1923–1991) was a legendary twentieth-century artist, filmmaker, painter, anthropologist, ethnomusicologist, and archivist. Especially well known for his Anthology of American Folk Music, innovative abstract films, and extraordinary collection of paper airplanes now housed at the Getty Research Institute, Smith also had a deep esoteric and mystical side, with experimentation in magic, Tarot, Kabbalah, and other occult practices. Like the alchemists, Smith’s life mission was to create a unified work from disparate elements, a synthesis of correspondences between seemingly unrelated topics, from music, string figures, and Seminole patterns to the relationship between sound and film imagery. Presenting the most diverse collection of writings about Smith, this volume explores the far-ranging esoteric themes that run throughout Smith’s art and career. It includes never-before-seen photos, rare interviews, personal letters, and an unpublished text by Harry Smith, The 96 Apparitions of the 96 Alchemical Formulae (1 to 36), as well as personal reminiscences from Smith’s friends and former students. With growing scholarly interest and a substantial show in 2023–24 at New York’s Whitney Museum of American Art, Smith’s groundbreaking mystical wisdom and “heaven and earth magic” are finally receiving the recognition they deserve, cementing Smith’s reputation as an artist of the extremes who rose above ordinary existence to make a profound contribution to art, music, film, and modern alchemy. Author Bio: Peter Valente is a writer, editor, translator, and filmmaker. He was born in Salerno, Italy, in 1970 and grew up in New Jersey. The author of 12 books and the translator of several influential works, including Gérard de Nerval’s The Illuminated, he lives in North Carolina.  https://facebook.com/peter.valente.35