"The May Day Project: From Rebirth to Revolution"

Please, save the date! We are planning our next Art Salon for:

Tuesday April 20th, 7:00pm at 428.5 East Locust St. #2, in the East Village. 

This meeting is MANDATORY for all artist participants!   

Announcements will be sent out via our electronic mailing list. If you would like to be on our list, please send your email address and we will happily add you!

Walpurgisnacht!

 Photo by David Castor

Walpurgis Night (Walpurgisnacht) is a traditional religious holiday of pre-Christian origin, celebrated today by Christian and non-Christian communities on April 30th and May 1st in large parts of Central and Northern Europe. With the current festival, in most countries that celebrate it, it is assumed by some Christian scholars that it was named after Saint Walpurga, born in Devon in around 710. Due to the coincidence of her holy day falling on the same day as the pagan holiday on which it was based, her name became associated with the celebrations. Some scholars believe that the word Walpurgis predates most known germanic dialects and cannot be defined by any other meaning except as the proper name for this ancient pagan holiday.

Historically Walpurgisnacht (April 30th) is derived from various pagan spring customs. Bonfires were built to keep away the dead and chaotic spirits that were then widely believed to walk among the living. This is followed by the return of light and the sun as celebrated during May Day. Some Christian historians reference a St. Walpurga who was a niece to St. Boniface and, according to legend, daughter of St. Richard, a saxon prince. She traveled with her brothers to Franconia, Germany and became a nun in the convent of Heidenheim, Bavaria, which was founded by her brother Willibald. Shortly after removing the mortal remains of her brother, St. Winibald Walpurga died of an illness on February 25th in 779. She is therefore listed in the Roman Martyrology under February 25th. So that she might be buried beside Willibald, her relics were transferred on May 1st and this date remains associated with her in the Finnish and Swedish Calendars.

In Germany, Walpurgisnacht, the night from April 30th to May 1st, is the night when alledgedly the witches hold a large celebration on the Brocken Mountain (the highest of the Harz Mountains in North Central Germany) and hold revels with their gods.....