By Tanitia Burks

April 30th is Walpurgis Night or Witches Night. It is recognized as the eve of the Christian feast of Saint Walpurga. Saint Walpurga was hailed by German Christians for fighting witchcraft. As such, Witches Night came about as a twist on and protest to 00this event.

To commemorate Witches Night, the San Diego Comic Con International Museum located in Balboa Park, San Diego hosted an event put on by Film Geeks San Diego in conjunction with San Diego State University's Library. The event included a display of film posters the likes of Rosemary's Baby and Wizard of Oz as well as centuries old artworks depicting witches and witchcraft along with historical texts about witchcraft including a the Malleus Maleficarum (Hammer of Witches) dated back to 1494.

San Diego State University's Professor Pollard conducted a lecture on the historical contexts of witchcraft as it relates to popular culture that covered art, stories and texts from ancient Roman and Greek depictions of witchcraft all the way up to modern depictions including some some of our favorite Disney villains and the lore of JK Rowlings wizarding world. Professor Pollard wove in themes of sexuality and feminism and how these concepts relate to the demonizing of witchcraft and the subsequent witch hunts of the 1400s and 1500s.

This event was a fascinating deep dive into both the history of witches in popular culture and the arts as well as a discussion about the social issues surrounding the the understanding and depictions of witchcraft over time. Film Geeks San Diego is also hosting a second event the following night to screen the film "The Witch" and will facilitate a panel discussion afterward.

Witches Night at the Comic Con Museum

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