Kings Cross icon Rosaleen Norton has been immortalised in a new documentary film, The Witch Of Kings Cross, which arrives today.
To attempt to condense the mythos of Rosaleen Norton in words would be a disservice to her esotericism. The New Zealand-born artist and occultist carved out her legacy during the bohemian era of Kings Cross. A devoted learner of pantheistic and Neopagan Witchcraft, Norton devoted her life and her art to the Greek god Pan.
Her art was revelatory, convention-defying and controversial — extramundane and uninhibited in its sexuality. Norton drew inspiration from gods, goddesses and spiritual beings, as part of her ceaseless quest to reach higher consciousness.
Norton’s art was the target of media outrage and police hostility. The postwar years of the 1940s and 50s in which she practiced was dominated by conservative Christian ideology — one that rejected the subversive nature of Norton’s work.
She was subjected to sensationalist tabloid critique and police intervention — her works were seized, her house raided and her work criminalised.
In addition to her practise as a painter, Norton was versed in the art of magic; including trance magic and sex magic — profoundly influenced by the writings of English occultist Aleister Crowley. She practised this magic in various flats and communal living spaces around Kings Cross and Sydney.
With The Witch of Kings Cross, writer and director Sonia Bible puts forward the question “did the scandals mask her genius?”. The film was predominately crowd and self-funded. Years in the making, Bible tracked down a number of Norton’s friends and contemporaries before their death, sourcing never-before-scene diaries and artworks.
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The Witch of Kings Cross is an amalgamation of historical footage and dramatic recreations. “The Witch of Kings Cross is the fascinating portrait of a fearless woman outlaw railing against fearful conservative forces and an insight into the work of an uncelebrated genius,” a description reads.
The film is out now on Amazon, iTunes, Vimeo and GooglePlay. You can watch a trailer below.
