Samhain: A Time of Remembrance: Special Edition Blog

New Moon's Messenger

Original Print - Ange Foster

Lunar Accent

Original Print - Ange Foster

Wings of Change

Original Print - Ange Foster

Hello creative alchemists,

The nights are stretching out longer now, and there’s that certain crispness in the air that whispers change is coming. It’s time for our Samhain gathering here on the blog, a moment to honour the turning of the Wheel and the ancestors who walk beside us.

A Cuppa and a Catch Up

In last week’s blog, I shared a little about how, living here in the Southern Hemisphere, Samhain aligns closely with ANZAC Day.
Growing up in a military family, ANZAC Day has always held deep meaning for me. It's not just a public holiday; it’s a personal day of remembrance. Since the Boer War, members of my family have been involved in almost every conflict Australia has seen.
So, when I pause on April 25th to honour the ANZACs, I’m also honouring my own bloodlines, my ancestors, and the stories they carried, stories of survival, sacrifice, strength, and deep resilience.
It feels fitting that Samhain, the festival of remembrance, weaves so closely into this sacred time.

In Flanders Fields - Original Painting by Ange Foster

Art Witch Musings: The Origins and History of Samhain

Samhain (pronounced Sow-in) is one of the four major fire festivals in the ancient Celtic calendar, marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. It falls halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice, a true liminal space where endings and beginnings meet.

For the ancient Celts of Ireland, Scotland, and parts of Britain, Samhain was the most important festival of the year. It was believed that during this time, the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead grew thin. Spirits could cross over more easily, and humans could reach across the divide through dreams, divination, and ritual.

Bonfires were lit across the hills to ward off wandering spirits and to offer light in the growing darkness. People would extinguish their home hearth fires and relight them from the communal bonfire, symbolising unity and renewal for the whole community.
Offerings of food and drink were left out for the ancestors and the 'Good Folk', the fae, who were especially active during this time.

Samhain wasn't a festival of fear, it was a deeply respectful time, an acknowledgment that death is simply part of life’s cycle. A pause. A breath. A sacred in-between.
In many ways, our modern practices like Halloween echo this older, earth-based wisdom, even if some of the nuances have been lost along the way.

Misty Samhain Morning in the Austrialan Bush

Working with Samhain in the Studio

Samhain is an incredible time to lean into shadow work and explore the themes of memory, loss, transformation, and rebirth in our creative practice.
Here are some ways you can weave the magic of this season into your art:

• Ancestor Altars: Set up a small corner of your studio space with photos, mementos, or objects that connect you to your ancestors or beloved dead. Let their energy inspire your work. Light a candle in their honour as you begin creating.

• Shadow Collages: Play with darker colours, torn edges, layered textures, and hidden imagery. Let yourself make art that feels raw, messy, honest.

• Release Rituals: Write down what you are ready to release on scraps of paper. Burn them safely in a cauldron or fireproof dish or tear them into tiny pieces and collage them into a background, transforming them into something new.

• Crows and Symbols: Crows, bones, bare branches, seeds tucked into cold earth, these are the icons of Samhain. Let them find their way into your sketches, paintings, or journal pages.

• Divination Drawing: Try pulling a card before you begin your studio session and allow it to shape your theme or palette for the day.

Remember: Samhain art is not about perfection. It’s about authenticity.
Let your hands be guided by your spirit, not your inner critic.

Art Journal Prompt

"What stories am I ready to release, and what deeper truths am I ready to honour?"

Let this question guide your next art journal page.
Work intuitively, let colour, line, texture, and symbol speak louder than words. Trust that whatever rises to the surface is exactly what needs to be witnessed.

Art Journal spread

Samhain Oracle Reading — 3 Card Spread

I pulled three cards for us, asking what energies we should honour this Samhain:

• 1. What needs to be honoured:
  The Ancestor — Your bloodline and spirit line are present. Honour the sacrifices, dreams, and love that brought you here. You carry them forward.

• 2. What needs to be released:
  The Mask — The need to pretend, to "perform" for others. Samhain calls you to lay down the masks and let your truest self breathe.

• 3. What is emerging:
  The Seed — A quiet spark of new beginnings is stirring beneath the surface. Tend to it gently. It’s not time for full bloom yet, but trust that it’s growing.

Take a moment to sit with these cards. Maybe even pull your own and see what additional messages come through.

🎶Samhain Playlist

To honour the turning of the Wheel, I’ve also created a special playlist for this liminal time — weaving together songs that speak to both the fire of Beltaine in the Northern Hemisphere and the deep introspection of Samhain here in the South.

Light a candle, pour a cuppa, and let the music guide you as you journal, create, or simply sit with the energies of the season.

A Little Reminder

If you’re feeling drawn to crow energy this season (and honestly, how could you not, crows are the messengers between worlds!), don’t forget:
🖤 My Crow Series is available my Redbubble store! 🖤
There are prints, stickers, journals, perfect companions for your Samhain altar or seasonal space.
Visit My Redbubble Store Here,

That’s it for this special Samhain edition, creative souls.
May this season bless you with deep connection, sweet remembrance, and the courage to move forward with open hearts.

Until next time,

Creative Crossroads: Art, Ritual, and the Turning Wheel

Colour Swatches

Hello, Creative Alchemists,

We find ourselves in a curious liminal space, between equinox and Samhain, as the moon begins its quiet return to shadow. The energy is shifting, and I can feel it echoing through both my body and my creative practice.

 Cuppa & Catch-Up

Welcome back. Pour yourself a cuppa and settle in, it’s time for a little studio and life catch-up, some witchy musings, and a whole lot of creative magic. Let’s dive in.

This fortnight has been full, Easter came and went, and while it’s a big part of the broader cultural calendar, it’s also a bittersweet time for many pagans. The first Sunday after the first full moon following the autumn equinox, so clearly rooted in ancient seasonal rhythms. It’s hard not to feel the tension when the most significant day in the Christian calendar echoes such overtly pagan symbolism, especially when we remember the women and wise folk persecuted in the church’s rise to power. I always try to walk a respectful line, acknowledging the past while recognising that I have family of many different faiths.

Sadly, this time, that wasn’t received as I’d hoped. In a post on my personal Facebook page I was challenged by a prominent member of the pagan community who felt my words were gaslighting or incorrect. It hurt. Not because we disagreed, that happens, but because they chose to attack rather than seek to understand. I share this because it’s important to remember we can hold nuance. We can respect others and still speak our truth with care.

On the studio front, it’s been all systems go! The countdown is on for the Creativa Exhibition with Collective 24 next month. We’re finalising the opening event, the promo is rolling out, and suddenly it all feels very real. Months of planning are now becoming something tangible. I think part of me thrives under deadline pressure, a hangover from art school, maybe?

I’m writing this between layers drying, and I’ve got a feeling there’ll be a couple of midnight sessions coming up. Make sure you’re following Collective 24 on Facebook and Instagram and RSVP to our opening event over on Facebook, we’d love to see you there!

Creativa by Collective 24

Art Witch Musings

This week’s Witchy Little Things was all about cleansing and clearing our art spaces, something that felt particularly timely as I recently had to reset mine to make space for my new electric wheelchair. It was more than just a rearrange; it was a full energetic clearing.

I talked about calling in the elements:

• Earth — placing grounding crystals around my space.

• Air — incense smoke curling through the air, shifting the energy.

• Fire — lighting a candle with intention.

• Water — misting with moon water I’d infused with lavender oil.

As promised, here’s my simple Lavender Moon Water Spray recipe:

1. Start with moon-charged water (leave a jar of water out under the full moon overnight).

2. Add a few drops of lavender essential oil.

3. Drop in a couple of clear quartz chips for extra energetic amplification.

4. Pour into a spray bottle and shake gently before use.

I use it to cleanse my space, my tools, or even myself when I’m shifting from mundane to magical.

Art Journal Prompt

Taurus New Moon Prompt:
Taurus invites us to slow down and reconnect with the physical world, to root into what feels nourishing and real.

Where in your life are you craving more stability, beauty, or comfort? What would it look like to honour your creative practice as a sacred ritual of embodiment, not just something you do, but something you feel?

Use this moon to ground yourself in your creative desires and don’t rush. Taurus teaches us that what grows slowly, lasts.

Art Journal Page

Artist of the Season: Yayoi Kusama

I had the absolute joy of seeing her work at the NGV recently, and it was like stepping into another universe, one where repetition becomes rhythm, and colour becomes incantation.

Even more special, I took my grandkids with me. Mr 3 was totally captivated by the colours, dancing through the space with wide-eyed wonder. Miss 7 asked such incredible questions, curious about the artist, the meaning, the why. Watching them engage with art in their own ways made the whole day unforgettable. That’s the magic, watching creativity spark across generations.

Yayoi Kusama was born in 1929 in Matsumoto, Japan. She began painting as a child, channelling the vivid hallucinations she experienced polka dots, infinite fields, strange patterns that engulfed her vision. Her art became her sanctuary.

In the 1950s, she moved to New York, a woman of colour in a deeply racist, male-dominated art world. And yet she carved out space with her mesmerising Infinity Net paintings and radical performance art.

Her work tackled trauma, mental illness, the body, and the oppressive systems around her, often decades ahead of her time. Many of her ideas were mirrored (and sometimes outright copied) by her male contemporaries. Still, she persisted.

In the 1970s she returned to Japan and checked herself into a psychiatric hospital where she still lives, continuing to create from a studio nearby.

Now in her 90s, Kusama is an icon, her mirrored rooms and giant pumpkins attract global audiences. She is a symbol of radical creativity, endurance, and the magic of trusting your inner world.

Her work reminds me that art can be loud, messy, obsessive, deeply personal and still powerful beyond measure.

Cycles of Craft Update

As we move closer to Samhain here in the Southern Hemisphere, I’ve been feeling that subtle shift, the soft thinning of the veil, the pull toward memory and honouring.

It always strikes me how this aligns with ANZAC Day, a moment in our national calendar where we collectively pause to remember those who served and sacrificed. In my family, this is deeply personal. Every generation has had someone step forward during times of conflict, believing they were protecting their families and their way of life. Some never returned. Others came back with the ghosts of war in tow.

For me, ANZAC Day and Samhain sit side by side, both rooted in remembrance. Both asking us to honour our ancestors, their choices, their burdens, their dreams.

This will also be the theme of my Samhain Special Edition blog post next week, where I’ll go deeper into ritual, remembrance, and the creative magic of this liminal time. Stay tuned.

Dawn Service

Before you go

Want to wear a little Samhain magic? Head over to my Redbubble store and check out my Crow Series — inspired by this season of shadow and mystery.

For a deeper dive into the Taurus New Moon, head to my Facebook page, where I’ve posted my latest astrology insights as part of the #CyclesOfCraft series.

And don’t forget to follow me on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop with daily updates, behind-the-scenes chaos, and sneak peeks of what’s on the way.

Thanks for spending some time in the studio with me. However you’re moving through this season, I hope you’re finding ways to honour your own pace. I hope to see some of you at the Creativa exhibition, it’s going to be such a celebration of creativity and community. Until then, keep crafting your magic the world needs your light.

Wishing you a grounded, creative, and nourishing Taurus season. See you next week for the Samhain Special Edition.

P.S. If you haven’t yet, I’d be so grateful if you could vote for my torso sculptures in the Stop It Before It Starts Art Show’s People’s Choice Awards. Voting is open until April 30, and every vote truly counts. You can view all entries and cast your vote here.

Kintsugi of the Soul

Art Witch Musings: Studio Notes, Magic & Momentum

Hello Creative Alchemists,

It’s the full moon in Libra this week and while we’ve moved our deeper astrology dives to social media, I still want to take a moment to acknowledge the energy of this lunation. Libra brings themes of harmony, balance and beauty, and after the eclipse season, Venus and Mercury retrogrades, this full moon feels like a moment to catch our breath and consolidate all that’s shifted. Keep an eye out on the socials for the deep dive.

Cuppa + Catch Up: Studio Happenings and Collective 24 News

Cuppa Time

Grab your favourite cuppa, light a candle, and get comfy, there’s lots to catch you up on.

Let’s start with the exciting news from Collective 24: we’ve secured a gallery and exhibition dates! We’re beyond thrilled to be exhibiting at Kindred Cameras Gallery in Docklands during the term break, from May 25 – June 3, with our opening night on May 30. We knew this was a big ask, a newly formed collective requesting their own dates from a gallery is not the usual way things are done (typically, galleries give you the dates), but we asked anyway… and they said yes! Not only can the gallery facilitate our requested time, but they also offer a package to curate and hang the show for us. How amazing is that?

This gives us space to focus on completing our work and planning an epic opening night. And yes, it’s fully accessible, which was non-negotiable for us. Accessibility in the arts matters, not just for me as a wheelchair user, but for everyone who wants to create and engage with art.

In light of the exhibition announcement, I’ve stepped up our profile sharing schedule on socials from weekly to daily, so I can start promoting both our artists and the exhibition. Starting next week, we will start taking a deeper dive into each of the artists and find out a little bit more about their art. If you’re not already following Collective 24 on Instagram and Facebook, come join us!

Inside the Studio: Sculpture, Layers + A Juicy Workshop

Back in the studio, I’ve been continuing to explore texture and layers. I made a fun little paper mâché sculpture last week inspired by seed pods, I even shared a reel of the process, so if you missed it, head to the grid to check it out.

I also signed up for a 5-day mixed media workshop with Art of Flow. I know, I know… as if I wasn’t busy enough! But it’s all about juicy layers and mixed media magic, and I couldn’t resist. One hour a day, and by the end of the week I should have a finished canvas ready to hang. Or at least some new techniques and a very messy art table.

I also have one more piece to finish for the Incognito Art Show.

More big news, I’m honoured to share that my “Kintsugi of the Soul” torsos won Round 3 of Violence Prevention Australia’s “Stop it Before it Starts” art competition. Voting is now open for the People’s Choice Award, and I would so appreciate your support if you can take a moment to vote for my work.

Accessibility + Advocacy: Life Outside the Studio

Outside the studio, things have been full on. I’ve had a stack of appointments with my healthcare team and have started seeing some new practitioners. My occupational therapist is doing all the behind-the-scenes advocacy work to try and get me an electric wheelchair, something that would make a huge difference to my daily life and independence. I’m dreaming of rolling down to my local café solo for a morning coffee. What can I say, I’m an Art Witch who lives in Melbourne, it’s the vibe!

Art Witch Musings: Colour Magic + Altar Building

Last week on the socials, we explored Colour Magic. As artists, we’re already familiar with colour theory, but colour has deep energetic and symbolic meanings too.

My palette has shifted naturally with the season, deep ochres, rusts, and warm ambers are showing up a lot. And gold. Always gold. Even when I try not to include it in a piece, it never feels finished until I add that shimmer.

Gold has long been linked to sun magic. It represents illumination, courage, and wisdom. It's also associated with divination, insight, creativity and happiness. In ancient cultures, gold was used in rituals and ceremonies, often symbolising divinity and the sacred.

This week, we’re looking at how building an Art Witch Altar can support both your creative and spiritual practice.

Here are some things you might include on your altar:

• Crystals for creativity (like Carnelian, Citrine, or Clear Quartz)

• A small candle to represent illumination

• Seasonal objects like leaves or seed pods

• A journal or notebook

• Tools you love, paintbrushes, pencils, or scraps of paper

• A tarot or oracle card pull

Altars don’t need to be big or fancy. A windowsill, a small shelf, even a corner of your desk will do. The key is creating a sacred space where you can drop into creative flow and honour your craft.

An art desk with Art Witch Altar items

Art Journal Prompt: Full Moon in Libra

This full moon invites us to reflect on the balance between caring for others and caring for ourselves.

Art Journal Prompt:

What does balance look like in your creative life? Where are you being called to restore harmony, between rest and making, between giving and receiving, between solitude and connection?

Let your page be a mirror.

Art Journal

Artist of the Season: Elizabeth Catlett

Our featured artist this season is Elizabeth Catlett (1915–2012), an African American and Mexican sculptor and printmaker whose work centred around themes of race, gender, motherhood, and resistance.

Catlett’s work was both politically engaged and deeply personal. She’s best known for her powerful linocut prints and sculptures that depict Black women with strength and dignity. Her career spanned more than 70 years, and her art often carried messages of empowerment, particularly for working class women and communities of colour.

Some of her iconic works include:

• Sharecropper (1952) — a striking linocut print

• Homage to My Young Black Sisters (1968)

• Mother and Child (multiple versions)

She believed art should serve the people and speak truth to power, a sentiment that still rings true in today’s world. Her influence can be felt across generations of feminist and activist artists.

Studio Tunes

I’ll leave you with this Autumn Vibes Playlist, a musical companion to this season of slow transformation and golden light.

Crafting Magic in the Mess

As the leaves turn and the light shifts, I’m feeling the rhythm of the season deep in my bones, that blend of letting go and digging deeper. Whether I’m layering gold leaf on canvas or shaping seed pods in paper mâché, I keep returning to this truth: there’s magic in the making, even in the mess. Especially in the mess. Thank you for being part of this creative unfolding, for showing up, reading along, and weaving your own threads into this ever-growing tapestry.

If you’d like to follow more of my daily art practice, studio rituals, and behind-the-scenes updates, you can find me over on Instagram and Facebook at @anges.studio. You can also check out my Redbubble store for art prints and goodies, or dive into more blog musings on my website at www.angesstudio.com. Until next time, keep crafting your own kind of magic.

With love and creativity,

New Beginnings & Liminal Spaces: A Fresh Chapter for the Blog

Hello Creative Alchemists,

The Aries New Moon is here, marking the astrological new year, a time of bold beginnings, fresh energy, and transformation. It feels like the perfect moment to step into something new, not just in my creative practice but in how I share my journey with you.

This blog is evolving. Astrology will always be woven into my work, but instead of dedicating space to it in these posts, I’ll now be integrating it into my #CyclesOfCraft updates on social media. This shift allows the blog to become more personal, a space for deeper reflections, creative insights, and the intersections of art, magic, and disability. Let’s dive in.

 Cuppa & Catch Up

Grab a cuppa, light some incense (or a candle if that’s your vibe), and settle in, it’s time for a catch-up on what’s been happening in the studio and beyond.

There’s been a lot of movement lately, both in my creative practice and within Collective 24. We’ve submitted to more galleries, looking for new opportunities to exhibit. But as always, accessibility is a key factor, it’s not just about finding a space; it’s about ensuring it’s a space where all artists and audiences can fully participate. It’s something we’re mindful of, and as we put our work out there, we also advocate for the changes we want to see.

I’ve also started profiling each of our amazing artists on the Collective 24 social media pages. If you haven’t already, check them out, give them a follow, and share their work, building community and uplifting each other is more important than ever. Let’s spread the love.

It feels like this is a moment of expansion, putting work out there, seeing where it lands, and trusting the process.

Speaking of process, I’ve been continuing my experimental mixed media work with texture. Right now, my practice feels deeply aligned with the Process Art movement, where the act of making is just as important as the final piece. There’s something freeing about focusing on materials, movement, and the unknown, letting the work emerge rather than forcing an outcome.

I’ve been looking at the works of Eva Hesse, particularly her studio experiments, and I find her approach fascinating. She wasn’t just creating finished pieces, she was engaging in a dialogue with her materials, pushing boundaries, embracing imperfection, and allowing each piece to evolve naturally. That resonates deeply, especially as a disabled artist. Some days, working with my body rather than against it means letting go of rigid expectations and allowing adaptability to guide me.

On a more personal note, the shift in seasons is making a difference in how I work. Cooler days mean I can spend longer in the studio, getting lost in the rhythm of making. I’ve also been diving into new pieces, including my submissions for the Incognito Art Show. Themes of hidden power, liminal spaces, and transformation keep showing up in my work, almost like they’re leading me somewhere… which brings me to Liminalis.

Art Witch Musings

Some pieces come from a clear vision. Others emerge from the in-between spaces, between light and shadow, intention and instinct. Liminalis was one of those works.

I didn’t set out to paint Hecate, yet there she was, a woman divided, one half in darkness, one in light, a golden line marking the threshold between them. A figure of transition, transformation, and power. As I worked, unknowingly, I was listening to a podcast about her. The connection wasn’t conscious at the time, but looking at her now, I know this piece was always meant to be hers.

Hecate is the goddess of the crossroads, the keeper of liminal spaces, the torchbearer who guides us through shadow and into truth. And in this eclipse portal, where we stand between what was and what will be, she feels especially present.

So today, I dedicate Liminalis to her. She will become a permanent devotional piece, holding space for transformation and deep knowing.

This blog is also shifting, moving deeper into my identity as an art witch. I want to explore:

• Bringing ritual into my art, charging pigments, setting intentions, working with moon cycles in a way that aligns with my practice.

• Using my art journal as a grimoire, documenting spells, insights, and seasonal reflections through mixed media.

• Creating more devotional pieces that honour the spirits and goddesses I work with.

• Exploring art as spellwork, sigils, correspondences, and the energy woven into every brushstroke.

This space will now hold those reflections, the ways creativity and magic intertwine, and the sacred process of making.

Liminalis

Art Journal Prompt: Honouring the Threshold

In this time of transition—seasonally, astrologically, and personally—let’s explore our own liminal spaces.

Prompt: Where in your life are you standing at a threshold? What is shifting, transforming, or waiting to emerge? How does it feel to be in between?

Try journaling, sketching, collaging—whatever medium calls to you. And if you feel like sharing, tag me!

Open art journal on a desk, its pages filled with sketches, handwritten reflections, and collaged elements. Surrounding it are art witch essentials: a burning candle, dried herbs, cup of tea, ink bottles, paintbrush, tarot cards.

Artist of the Season: Alexandra Grant - Language & Symbolism in Art

Each season, I want to highlight an artist whose work resonates with me. Right now, I’m deeply inspired by Alexandra Grant, a Los Angeles-based artist whose work explores language, mythology, and interconnectedness.

Grant works primarily with text and symbols, using painting, drawing, and sculpture to create visual conversations. Her work often investigates the relationship between words and images, drawing on literature, poetry, and philosophy. One of her most notable collaborations has been with writer Keanu Reeves, where she transformed his words into layered, evocative pieces.

Her use of language as a visual medium is something I find fascinating. Words, much like symbols in witchcraft, carry an energy beyond their literal meaning. They hold weight, memory, and magic. Grant’s ability to merge text with image feels like a modern form of spellwork, art that speaks on multiple levels.

If you’re interested in artists who blur the lines between writing and visual storytelling, I highly recommend looking into her work. Her "Antigone 3000" series or her collaborations with writers like Michael Joyce. Her ability to translate the abstract into the tangible is something I find incredibly inspiring. Find out more about Alexander here.

Autumn Vibes

As the season shifts, so does the soundtrack. I’ve put together an Autumn Playlist on Spotify, moody, atmospheric, and perfect for creative sessions. You can listen and follow it here:

Let me know what songs are on your seasonal rotation!

Closing Thoughts & Where to Find Me

New seasons bring new energy, and I’m excited for the direction things are flowing, both in the studio and in community This shift feels right. More personal. More aligned. I’m excited to see how this space evolves, how it becomes a home for deeper conversations about art, witchcraft, and living as a disabled artist navigating a world that often wasn’t built with accessibility in mind.

✨ If you’re looking to bring a little of that energy into your space, check out my Redbubble shop for prints, stickers, and more: [Link to shop]

✨ Want to keep up with Collective 24 and support fellow artists? Follow us on Instagram and Facebook

✨ To stay up-to-date with all things seasonal and cyclic, including astrology updates (think new and full moon reports), check out my #CyclesOfCraft updates on socials. You’ll find #StudioUpdates, behind-the-scenes reels, and more. Also, keep an eye out for #LittleWitchyThings and #ArtWitchTips, they’ll continue to pop up over there to help guide your creative and spiritual practices. Instagram and Facebook.

✨ And as always, let’s keep the conversation going, drop a comment, share your journal pages, and let me know how this season is unfolding for you.

Here’s to bold new beginnings.

Until next time, stay creative and stay magical.