Exhibit to explore witchraft’s history

Witchcraft is a topic that has been explored across many media platforms. It’s been the subject of films, from the kid-friendly “Hocus Pocus,” to the movie-turned-musical “The Witches of Eastwick.” Witchcraft has also been the focal point on TV, from “Bewitched” to “Charmed.”

However, L.A.-based artist Francesca Gabbiani wants to change how people think about witchcraft. While this UCLA alumna has explored the topic throughout her artistic career, Gabbiani is now examining that topic as a guest curator for the Hammer Museum’s Houseguest series of artist-curated programs.

“The idea of witches, I don’t see a witch as male or female,” Gabbiani said. “I was interested in the history of witchcraft and the witch hunt.”

UCLA professor Teofilo Ruiz, chair of the Spanish & Portuguese department, teaches History 119D, a class on medieval history that touches on the popular topic of witchcraft and its history.

“It’s not so much about witchcraft but the witch craze, a period in European history when the belief in witches was widespread, and it led to the killings of many women,” said Ruiz, who also spoke about the role the witch craze plays in the modern-day world. “Of course the class is very, very large, and there are always some people who claim to be practitioners of Wicca and to do modern witchcraft and things like that.”

Gabbiani’s exhibit is the second in the Houseguest program. She selected a wide range of artwork, essays and other materials for her three-month-long exhibition, running since late February through May 24.

“Basically, the whole idea of the show was to inform (of) my own work. All those subjects are subjects currently in my own practice,” she said. “I wanted to use the Grunwald Collection as a laboratory for my own work.”

Gabbiani took from the Grunwald Center for the Graphic Arts at the Hammer, as well as from UCLA’s Departments of Special Collections.

She will also be screening three films during her exhibition. The first, “Day of Wrath,” will screen today at 7:30 p.m. The other films include “Haxan, on May 13 and “Danse Macabre,” a collection of shorts, on May 16.

“The idea to add films to the exhibit was the idea of the UCLA Archive,” she said. “For the lecture, I kind of picked what I wanted. For the movies, I worked in collaboration with (Archive programmer) Mimi Brody.”

Speaking with Gabbiani, it’s clear witchcraft and the other major theme in her exhibition and work ““ sorcery ““ have been both part of her work and inspiration for a long time. Gabbiani even specifically referenced these films when discussing how she became increasingly familiar with witchcraft over the years.

“I’ve always been interested in artists like Kenneth Anger and movies like “˜Haxan,’ or some of the shorts being shown,” she said. “I always liked the idea of showing silent movies.”

To replicate the experience of silent movies, “Haxan” will be shown with live music from musician Eddie Ruscha, also known as “The Secret Circuit.”

“Back in the day, silent movies were always accompanied by live music,” Gabbiani said. “I thought it would be really great to recontextualize that movie with more contemporary music.”

With or without the music, these three films play a vital role in explaining and exploring witchcraft and sorcery, which have both come to play increasingly important roles in Gabbiani’s art.

“I think it’s more prominent in my work today than it was five or six years ago,” Gabbiani said. “The work was always talking about movies. That’s why I was so happy to curate the movies, too.”

Aside from using the Grunwald Center collection and the Houseguest collection for her own “laboratory,” Gabbiani has also received influential feedback from others at the exhibit.

“I am very surprised and happy about the feedback that I get and how people respond to the show,” she said. “It does speak about being an artist in a way. I’m happy with the reaction people have when they see it.”