ARAS NEW YORK CITY WEEKEND LINE-UP
Archive for Research in Archetypal Symbolism
(28 E 39th St, New York, NY 10016)

Friday, September 25, 2026 · 7pm-10pm

Fairy Tale Costume Fête
To begin our fairy tale weekend, join us for a night of wine, congeniality, entertainment, costume, and the opportunity to revel in the shadow.

Saturday, September 26, 2026 · 9 am- 6 pm

9:00-10:00 Dream circle

10:30 · Introductory Remarks

10:45 · Keynote
Joanna Ebenstein, Morbid Anatomy Founder and Creative Director

11:15 · The Enchanted Scenography of Kay Nielsen
Meghan Melvin, Museum of Fine Arts Curator

12:00 · Folklore and Hope
Alisa Sickora, Costume Designer and Artist

12:45 · Spinning Straw into Gold: P.L.Travers' Passion for Fairytales
Patricia Llosa, M.F.A., L.P. Jungian analyst

1:30 · The Forest Knows the Way: Baba Yaga and the Return of Feminine Wisdom
Muriel McMahon, Jungian analyst

2:15· Enchanted Minds: Hysteria, Mediumship and the Fairy Tale Imagination
Asti Hustvedt, Ph.D., Hysteria & Literature Scholar

3:15 · Candy Crush: The Witch as Temptress
Pam Grossman, Witch, Author & Host of the Witch Wave

4:00 · The Frog Way: Fairy Tales as an Amphibian Artform
Devon Deimler, PhD,. Mythological and Depth Psychology Scholar

SUNDAY Join us at the Morbid Anatomy Library
for more revelry as Joanna Ebenstein will be there to sign books and our library will be open to reveal the newest exhibit of enchanted hair! LINK

SPEAKER BIOS

Asti Hustvedt, Ph.D., is an independent scholar who has written extensively on hysteria and literature. She is the author of Medical Muses: Hysteria in Nineteenth-Century Paris and the editor of The Decadent Reader: Fiction, Fantasy and Perversion from Fin-de-Siècle France.

Devon Deimler, PhD is a writer, artist, and mythologist. She is Associate Core Faculty of Mythological Studies with an Emphasis in Depth Psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute and is Curator of exhibits and events at OPUS Archives and Research Center. She has served as a Contributing Artist-Scholar and Special Editions Editor at the Philosophical Research Society and has led many arts and music projects over the years.

Joanna Ebenstein is a Brooklyn-based artist, writer, curator, photographer and graphic designer. She is the founder and creative director of Morbid Anatomy. Her books include Memento Mori: The Art of Contemplating Death to Live a Better Life, Anatomica: The Exquisite and Unsettling Art of Human Anatomy andDeath: A Graveside Companion. You can watch her Tedx Talk--Death as You've Never Seen it Before--here.

Muriel McMahon is a Zurich trained Jungian analyst, writer, and retreat facilitator. She weaves fairytales, dreams, and depth psychology into soulful explorations of the human journey. Founder of FoxHaven Retreat Centre in Ontario, she hosts story-centered retreats where myth and forest meet. She is the author of three books: Baba Yaga’s Wisdom, Toward a Sacred End, and Mater Misericordaie.

Patricia Llosa, M.F.A., L.P., is a Peruvian-American Jungian analyst maintaining a private practice in New York City.With a background in archaeology and art history, she previously spent over two decades as an administrator and educator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She serves on the board of ARAS, teaches internationally, and is on the faculty of the Jungian Psychoanalytic Association and the Marion Woodman Foundation and the BodyDreaming in Developmental Trauma Training.

Pam Grossman is a writer, curator, and teacher of magical practice and history. She is the host of The Witch Wavepodcast (“the Terry Gross of Witches” - Vulture) and the author of Waking the Witch: Reflections on Women, Magic, and Power(Gallery Books / Simon & Schuster) and What Is A Witch(Tin Can Forest Press). She is also co-editor and co-author of the WITCHCRAFT volume of Taschen’s Library of Esoterica series. Her new book, Magic Maker: The Enchanted Path to Creativity, was published by Penguin Life in October 2025.

Alisa Sickora is a costume, mask, and puppet designer with nearly two decades of experience teaching theatre design and mentoring award-winning technicians and designers. Founder of Scared of My Shadow, an art mask and concept-driven costuming studio, they bring a sculptural, "maker" approach — rooted in fine art and enhanced by 3D modeling and fabrication tech — to storytelling, transformation, and character design.