Mugwort
Hello dear ones,
Welcome to the Kin Story of November. The past month, Shani Leseman and I have been living, working and creating with the magical plant Mugwort. In this Kin Story, we are going to share writings, experiences and visual studies of Mugwort. Next to this shared documentation, we both present our odes to Mugwort, as a thank you for the deepened bond and understanding.
Mugwort has played a significant role in my life for quite some years now. We would meet at least once a month, during my bleed. Living with a menstrual cycle can come with a certain kind of discomfort, but a hot infusion of Mugwort in combination with other herbs knows how to ease the womb. Shani was actually the one who obtained this medicinal recipe, which makes our shared relationship with Mugwort undeniable.
The Latin name for common Mugwort is ‘Artemisia Vulgaris’, named after the Greek lunar-goddess Artemis. Mugwort received this name because of the effect she has on the female reproductive system, which is connected and guided by the moon cycle. But, there is more to this plant-goddess connection. Next to being the goddess of women’s health, Artemis is also the divine protector of wilderness and nature. A protector of our intuition and dreams, which are both guides to our truest self.
It did not matter if I would connect to Mugwort in nature, if I would drink a herbal infusion or if the smoke of her dried, burning aerial parts would fill my room with her presence - I would always feel this portal opening to different parts of my subconscious. Her presence is one of a storyteller, but only of stories that are written deep within our being. Even more so now she can be found outside, cloaked in the drought of autumn, fully turning inward. I can feel her ghostly presence as multifold. A blueish-grey veil draped over her leaves and buds, a reflection of the veil she helps me trespass when she accompanies me in the dreamworld.
November, 2024
Triad , Shanna M. Casey, indigo and earth pigments on Khadi cotton rag paper, 29.7 x 42 cm
In my visual studies of Mugwort, I reflected on her connection to the goddess Artemis. Artemis is one of three moon goddesses, the others beings Selene and Hecate. Each of them has a specific place within the world, but they are all part of the same divine being: the triple moon goddess. This triad entity empowers the shift of seeing the workings of the world in duality, to seeing everything unfold into three or more. The loosening of polarisation leaves me with space to breathe, a space for questioning and exploring, for dreaming. There is no either/or, because there is always another possibility or realm to discover.
This painting is my final ode to Mugwort. It is made with raw Indigo, a pigment with a colour that was vividly present during my meetings with Mugwort. Everything that I learned about Mugwort during the past month is crystallised in this visual work. Her guidance through mystery, her wise and wild nature and the connection we share through her healing properties on my body. This work was painted in silence, humming and creating to the presence of Mugwort, the portal that she guided me through, the portal that she is.
Mugwort, Shanna M. Casey, indigo and acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40 cm
Shani Leseman on Mugwort
Shani Leseman is an artist living and working in The Hague. In her art practice, she focuses on magic, ritual and visualising that which is invisible to the human eye. Currently, she is working on a project which involves the caretaking of feral pigeons, which brings to light the forgotten kinship we share with these magnificent creatures.
Early meetings with Mugwort
This card is part of a series of ceramic tablets I made in 2023. I made many of them as a result of a fun game I play now and then, to collect personal imagery. The idea is simple. Write down a list of every letter of the alphabet. Then, for every letter, you write down a personally meaningful symbol. It can be an object, animal, food, country, whatever comes to mind. The key is to work quickly and to not give your rational thoughts any time to come in between you and the game. Once your list is complete, make a drawing for all of these symbols. Afterwards, but do give it some time, you can analyze them as being tarot cards.
For the letter M, Mugwort(h) came up. The card shows a large, towering mugwort plant on the right. A strong presence next to a human figure sitting quietly on a stool on the left. It is as if the human meditates on the plant, observing it and listening to it in an open, reflective state. The figure is transparent, their hands resting in their lap. Above their head hovers a single mugwort leaf, as if the plant is transferring wisdom or opening pathways.
This card might encourage the seeker to reflect, connect with the different kins, and listen. It shows the plant's powers and wisdom, larger than life. The card invites the seeker to connect deeply with the plant and explore intuition, dreams, and the messages of the natural world. What does the mugwort have to say?
Mugwort(h), Shani Leseman, ceramics, 21 x 13x0.5 cm
Mugwort and the dream world
Some dreams from my childhood feel as vivid as the memories I made while awake. There were reoccurring dreams, predictive dreams, and -the ones who stayed with me most- the flying dreams. In these adventures, I would float in between the world I knew from waking life and another, where I could see things I had never seen in my then 8 years on this planet.
At night, I would hover over our garden, visit friends’ houses and fly through grain fields and cloud landscapes. When I told my mom about these dreams, she would explain that what I was doing at night were called out-of-body experiences, or astral travels. These stories about flying dreams, she had heard from her mother and grandmother, too.
In my adult life I have lost this ability to fly in dreams. It would return only briefly, maybe once or twice. Until I intentionally reconnected with mugwort. I have used the herb before to help me to ease menstrual pains, where she has been a great support. I kept her dried leaves beside my bed, sometimes burning them to cleanse lingering energies or ward off nightmares. Yet I have never asked her guidance to this side of the dream world, until now.
This past month, I have been flying in my dreams every other night. I will not bore you with the exact dreams- but I will share that I am so happy this experience is back with me. It’s magical to experience the feeling of flight as a non-flying animal.
Strangely, these dream flights have softened the boundary between dreaming and waking life. In dreams, I find myself more awake, and in waking life, I’m more attuned to the symbolic language of my surroundings. It feels like an ongoing dialogue—an invitation to observe and engage with both inner and outer worlds as they are deeply interconnected.
This openness to symbolic meaning isn’t just for the dream world. It extends into waking life. We can learn from the way we (lucidly) dream—from the symbols that emerge and the decisions we make. Listen, observe, and engage with the subtle cues and hidden patterns, both while dreaming and while awake. The moments after you wake up from the dream realm can be just as magical and transformative—if one listens to its messages.
Mugwort, Shani Leseman, plant inks and oil pastel on canvas, 30 x 40 cm
Working with Mugwort in an artistic practice
I finished a new painting. It is called: on (the experience of seeing) a phantom/spirit/ghost. It’s made with several self-made plant inks and earth pigments, like nettle, walnut, indigo, coreopsis, goldenrod, madder, campeche, iron oxides, charcoal, earth and oil paint, oil pastels and chalk on a 160 x 120 canvas.
During the making of this painting I have used mugwort as a cleansing incense in the studio. I gathered this mugwort partly from my previous studio garden (an old school building turned tea garden turned artist studio) and partly from the dunes of the Hague while taking a walk with Shanna and Juniper.
It not only clears my mind and energy of daily errands and e-mails, but also helps me to concentrate and get into a receptive state to listen to what the painting wants to become. I feel like the plant has influenced this painting a lot, not only because of the ritual of burning but also in the vivid experiences she gave me in the dream world the past weeks. The painting and I have also only just met, so there is not much I can say about it yet. But there is enough to be seen.
On (the experience of seeing) phantom/spirit/ghost Shani Leseman, plant inks (nettle, black walnut, indigo, coreopsis, logwood, goldenrod, madder, black alder, charcoal, earth, iron oxide), oil paint, oil pastels and oil chalks on canvas, 120 x 160 cm