Salem Arts Metaphysical Series
Tarot Artist Talk:
The Salem Arcanum
Tarot
Wednesday, October 21, 2026
6:00 pm EST - 8:00 pm EST
Free Event for Salem Arts Members & Tarot Class Registrants
Suggested Donation for Non-Members: $20
Join us for an engaging artist talk with Salem photographer James Bostick, creator of the Salem Arcanum Tarot. This special event invites audiences into the magical world of a photographic tarot deck conceived, created, and inspired by Salem, Massachusetts. Through conversation and visual insight, Bostick will discuss the origins of the project, the symbolism behind the images, and the creative process that shaped his distinctive interpretation of tarot’s enduring visual language.
This presentation will include a history or artist and photographer tarot projects followed by a Q&A panel discussion with the artist, special guest Rev. Madame Therese M. DeVoe, Hps., and our host Leah Ordonia.
Salem Arcanum Tarot
The Salem Arcanum Tarot by James Bostick, interprets the visual and symbolic language of the tarot through the lens of a camera. The images and symbols of the Tarot tradition have a rich and ancient history. Bostick has studied and been inspired by these themes and offers this series of photographic interpretations of the complex visual language that is Tarot.
Bostick directed his interest in semiotics, the study of language and symbol systems, towards the pictorial storytelling of the tarot. Bostick’s lived experience with the culture and people of Salem has added to his inspiration as he embarked on his photographic journey to explore this intertwined visual experience.
For those who believe in the mysteries of the tarot they contain personality and attempt divination at the heart of each image. The outcome is a secret language and form of expression uniquely their own.
Creating the Salem Arcanum Tarot
Creating The Salem Arcanum Tarot, Bostick is tied to what is possible in his studio. Every image in the series becomes a portrait that tells the human story within each card. In the fantastic world of tarot, commonly seen as illustrations or paintings, anything is possible. But in the studio Bostick is constrained by the boundaries of the frame and limits of real people as actors. Each work becomes a tiny theater production. The compositions are reduced to the bare necessities and artifacts needed to tell the stories. He does not rely on digital trickery to achieve his vision. “What you see happens before my camera and is captured in its entirety in my studio” according to Bostick. The result is possibly the only representation of the tarot entirely crafted before a camera.
About James Bostick
James Bostick is a Salem Massachusetts artist known for his figurative storytelling style of fine art photography. He works from his Gallows Hill studio, a location rich in historic and cultural heritage that inspire many of his themes drawing from art history, religion, and the occult. His signature studio lighting and human-centered approach result in rich compositions resembling theater productions.
Bostick’s work features local people as “actors” along with props and wardrobe he creates or gathers as needed to create his scenes. His early career as a fashion photographer provided unique experience in studio lighting and working with models. Other inspirations include his dark approach to still life photography and capturing Infrared images of architectural and natural landmarks.
Bostick discovered his love of photography as a teenager, leading to a bachelor’s degree in fine art from Tyler School of Art at Temple University and a master’s degree from Penn State University in semiotics and art history. He is the 2025 recipient of a "Grants for Creative Individuals" Award from the Mass Cultural Council and has exhibited in galleries and museums in North America and Europe including the Peabody Essex Museum, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the State Museum of Pennsylvania. Honors include numerous solo exhibitions, including a May 2026 solo exhibition of the Salem Arcanum Tarot in Porto Portugal, and awards from regional galleries throughout his 40-year creative career as an artist and designer.
Learn more about James Bostick at SalemArcanum.com or JBostick.com
About Rev. Madame Thérèse M. DeVoe, Hps.
Rev. Madame Thérèse M. DeVoe, Hps., is a native-born Salem Witch of French Canadian descent who has practiced witchcraft and the spiritual arts for more than fifty years. A third-degree High Priestess in the Cabot-Kent Hermetic Tradition, she is known for handcrafted, one-of-a-kind artwork created for ceremony, healing, adornment, decoration, and meaningful gifting.
A member of Salem’s elite Black Doves of Isis Coven, Madame Thérèse is recognized as a significant part of the history of modern Salem witchcraft. She was publicly acknowledged as one of Salem’s first modern-day Witches in the April 1979 issue of National Geographic and was later featured in the World of Witches Museum on Pickering Wharf. She is also a member of Mystique Women of Salem and the Black Hat Society, and has studied with many teachers, including Laurie Cabot, the Official Witch of Salem.
Thérèse is a visual artist, fashion designer, musician, sacred dancer, and local fashion icon. As an entrepreneur, she started her own company Breath of the Soul, and hand-made Shakuhachi instruments and pan pipes in various sizes and octaves made of Japanese knot weed from Salem, as well as corn dolls and dreamcatchers made from Salem Willow trees. Thérèse’s entrepreneurship grew as she ran her own store The Oracle Chamber on Derby Street where she sold her hand-made products and held practical magic and belly dance classes and workshops for ten years from 2001 to 2011.
She has designed and modeled clothing for the Salem Arts Festival Fashion Show, Peabody Essex Museum’s Artopia, and exhibitions at Salem Arts Association. James Bostick, former president of Salem Arts, calls her “one of his muses,” and she appears as the High Priestess in his tarot deck, The Salem Arcanum Tarot.
In addition to creating fashion, accessories, fabric art, folk art, and fine jewelry, Thérèse is a vocalist and instrumentalist who has made panpipes from locally harvested reeds. Her musical work includes ambient music, rock and roll as a founding member of the early 1980s band Original Sin, and healing music with the David Sykes Harmonic Choir and others. She has also studied theater and performed sacred dance for more than thirty years. Her media appearances include CBS Evening News with Dan Rather, Lifetime Channel, and the National Enquirer TV. When she marched with her daughter Rose in the 1978 Salem Heritage Parade - the first time the Witches of Salem ever marched in the parade - the event was featured in magazines and media worldwide. She was also featured in the October to November 2011 issue of Boston’s Northshore Magazine for a documentary on the education of young witches in Salem.
Continuing the DeVoe family’s tradition of community involvement, Madame Therese has served her birthplace through business, civic participation, creative work, and the arts. Through her spiritual practice, artistry, performance, and lifelong connection to Salem, she continues to preserve and embody a living piece of Salem, Massachusetts, historical magic. And when you purchase a work by Madame Therese you own a piece of Salem, Massachusetts, historical magic.
If you would like a reading from Madame Therese she currently offers Tarot readings at the Oracle Chamber on 213 Essex Street from 1 pm to 6 pm Fridays and Saturdays. And when you purchase a work by Madame Therese you own a piece of Salem, Massachusetts, historical magic.
About Leah Ordonia
Leah Ordonia is a multi-media gallery artist, illustrator, animator, and artist lecturer with creative roots in the Hollywood entertainment industry, France, and New York. As a healer and psychic medium she has achieved Reiki Mastery, Rune Grand Mastery, Belvaspata Grand Mastery, and has served in healing circles, plant medicine ceremonies, and interstate metaphysical fairs nation wide. As a member of the Salem Arts Association Board of Directors, Leah initiated the Metaphysical Series with the intention of bridging the gap between the visual arts and the metaphysical arts to push the boundaries of pure creativity to new heights. If you would like to learn the Tarot, Leah is offering a Tarot Intensive for Artists & Creatives : an all-encompassing three-week Beginning Tarot course offered at the Salem Gallery on September 30th, October 7th, and October 14th. To learn more about Leah and the course, please visit the event page on the Salem Arts website.
