Caledonia Curry’s story of the Sibylant Sisters starts like many others in the fairytale genre, although it takes just a few words to realize that something is off: “Once upon a swampy ol’ dirt road, two sisters, Caelum and Terra, were growing up under the care of a spindly little witch by the name of Katarina.” The narrative continues with the sorcerous mother beginning to unravel, prompting the siblings to rely on the younger Caelum’s magical powers to survive.
“This story is drawn from my own childhood growing up at the end of a dirt road with a mother who was in the midst of a psychotic breakdown, and a lifetime spent teasing out the relationship between creativity, intuition, magic, and madness,” the artist says.
Curry, who’s better known as Swoon (previously), has taken a sort of narrative turn in her practice as of late, translating her interest in family and intergenerational trauma into a sprawling, mythical tale. Seven years in the making, the project is multi-disciplinary and spans sculpture, installation, costume, film, and more. Many of the works can be seen in a four-part read-aloud, and they’ve also spawned an 88-card deck called “The Oracle of the Sibylants,” complete with symbolic imagery distinct to the artist’s practice.
Included are renderings common in divination, including stars and smoking cauldrons, along with more idiosyncratic objects like a glowing Skee Ball machine and flailing garden hose. “Suffused with joy and tenderness amidst the hardship, these cards speak the language of fairytale, because there are some truths that can only be told by witches and unicorns, ogres and toads,” Swoon adds.
“The Oracle of the Sibylants” is currently funding on Kickstarter, which features a video glimpsing some of the live-action and animated films to come. Stay up to date with the entire project—which Swoon envisions as a traveling exhibition, films, novella, and theatrical production—on Instagram.
