Now You See Her - Major Project (Part Four)
Women in magic have been side-lined and branded as the “glamorous assistant” for centuries - their abilities as performers and magicians having largely gone unacknowledged. There is a lack of visible diversity in the magic community, and with this project, I hoped to change that.
“Now You See Her” aims to highlight these forgotten and overlooked women, both past and present, and showcases their lives and work through a travelling exhibition.
Meet The Magicians - Adelaide Herrmann
A Victorian inspired sewing box, giving the user the equipment and materials to 'mend a broken heart'. Inspired by Golden Age legend Adelaide Herrmann, it takes you through her life journey from a magician's assistant, to widow, to lead magician of her own show. She began her magic career as assistant to her husband, magician Alexander Herrmann. Together, they entertained audiences with a variety of magic tricks, including escape tricks and the bullet catch trick. Adelaide was a key part of many illusions, performing as a levitating sleeper, a human cannonball, and famously, The Phantom Bride, of which this kit is formed around. Due to her husbands death, she was forced to take over the show and become lead magician. Many of her following tricks centred around marriage, loss and heartbreak.
I wanted to really showcase the style of this time by taking images from Adelaide’s life and incorporating them with the items you may find in a sewing kit. Such images include the skull of a bird from the Egyptian Hall museum, in which her father helped build and unique animals from her Noah's Ark trick
