21/05/2026
Wondering what 'Phantasmagoria' means?
Let us explain:
Phantasmagoria refers to a late eighteenth-century form of theatrical spectacle which used light projections to conjure apparitions, often blurring entertainment, occult ritual and illusion.
The term was coined by Paul Philidor, a magician, scientist and entertainer, who derived it from the Ancient Greek φάντασμα, phántasma, meaning ‘ghost’, and αγορά, agora, meaning ‘assembly, gathering’.
Later adopted by philosophers Karl Marx and Walter Benjamin, the word ‘phantasmagoria’ was used to describe the seductive illusions of commodity capitalism.
Today, phantasmagoria remains a useful term to describe the continuing power of digital technology to seduce us and conjure illusions.
Visit Phantasmagoria: Folkloric Sculpture for the Digital Age to experience the work of ten artists who are similarly attuned to the enchantments of contemporary technology and the forms of belief it generates.
We’re open Tuesday – Sunday, 10am–5pm. Free entry.
Closed bank holiday Monday.
Images:
Installation views of Phantasmagoria: Folkloric Sculpture for the Digital Age at Henry Moore Institute until 30 August 2026.
Including:
- Nina Davies, Image Syncers 2025
- Isaac Lythgoe, Why can’t we remember the future? 2023
- Joey Holder, The Woosphere 2025
- Jürgen Baumann, Saugott oder die lernäische Schlange [Piggod or the Lernaean Serpent] 2022
- Isaac Lythgoe, When everything is new the pleasures are skin deep 2023
- Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley, PIRATING BLACKNESS/BLACK TRANSSEA.COM 2021. Courtesy the artist and Public Gallery, London
- Steph Linn and Philip Speakman, After the Vale 2026
Photos: Rob Harris