Misty Alvaro (Ohio)

Ritual for Visibility

Watercolor, graphite and cotton thread on canvas
Designed, painted and stitched by Misty Alvaro / Tweet by Fobazi Ettarh @fobattarh

“Comprised of three sigils constructed by the artist, a queer, pagan library professional, this piece is a coded message about hidden identity, labor, and invisibility. Sigils are unique symbols constructed from words expressing desires or emotions; they are used in many pagan traditions to focus intention and bring about change. Sigils may be created in any medium: chalk, paint, stitched onto clothing, or even marker on the soles of shoes. For some practitioners, the exact phrase or meaning hidden in the symbol is intended to be forgotten. For others, the spell gains potency as the sigil wears away.”

The top left sigil comes from the phrase, “When we do this right, nobody sees us.”

The middle sigil says, “Don’t assume I’m cishet.”

At the bottom right, the sigil is from a tweet by Fobazi Ettarh (@fobattarh) and says, “Vocational awe is fucking toxic.”

*****

Misty Alvaro is a processing and cataloging manager at Columbus Metropolitan Library in Columbus, Ohio.

The piece features a watercolor background on canvas, painted in shades of gray and yellow. Three sigils are diagonally stitched onto the canvas, going from upper left to bottom right.