Lester's House installation at the Festival Of The Dark Arts

 It's 2025, and I'm still a passionate miniaturist and a dollshouse hoarder. Let's resume this blog!

Back in 2015 (a whole decade ago) I exhibited this dollshouse at London's Apiary studios as a part of The Festival Of The Dark Arts.

My imagination was captured by a drawing of a cross-section of a 1960s San Francisco hippie house in Jason Atomic's underground comic "Satanic Mojo", which I carefully recreated in 1:12 scale 3D, and installed it in this beautiful space against the old crumbling wall:

This was the installation night, and here's how my dollshouse looked in situ in the daytime:

Now - the tour!

The top of the house hosted a shrine to the Black Madonna/ Baphomet, a horned god with St Sebastian arrows holding a sacrificial lamb. The stark, dark-beamed attic held space for divination with a crystal ball, as well as some tiny bats.

Below the attic was the Tripping Room, a cosy soft-furnished hippy den with psychedelic wallpaper, posters, soft furnishings, an old tee-vee, ashtray, and a mattress on the floor covered in snacks, beer cans and underground comics. Far out, man!

Beneath the tripping den you will find a bohemian bathroom and bedroom - a home to the brilliant character from Satanic Mojo comix,  Lester Starbeard - queer, extravagant astral dreaming superhero in the 1960s (vaguely inspired by the Cockettes, apparently). 

Every house needs a kitchen and the sitting room. The story in the comic goes that Lester inherited this old San Francisco townhouse from his grandma, and moved into it with his witchy hippie posse without much re-decorating, so I wanted to keep the homely vibe, where old lady's doilies and knicknacks get slowly and chaotically invaded by cobwebs and occult books. 

The house stands on the Satanic Basement, where you'd descend the creaky dusty stairs for all your occult ritual needs:

In the gallery, next to the dollshouse, I hung a page from the comic which inspired it:

It was a brilliant group show to exhibit in, and the audience response to the dollshouse was ever so enthusiastic.

 And 10 years on, now that I have accumulated eight vintage dollshouses in my collection, I am itching to create a yet more ambitious installation. Cross your fingers and watch this space....