Pickles sure looks cute in her new Cloak of Protection!

Just added to the Doctor Baer store, these hoodies are covered in hand-drawn mystical script describing protective incantations appealing to spirits from the world of Doctor Baer. Here’s the listing copy:

Many things can happen at the crossroads, particularly those situated along the trails between Raven’s Crest and Giants’ Rocks, or the treacherous paths surrounding the Gray Marshes. Fire skeletons, living mulches, or any manner of baleful spirits might impede your journey.

In ancient times wary travelers sought the aid of the Hoarse Hags, keepers of deep wisdom concerning the primordial magics. Those lucky enough to find these elusive and secretive people were taught to inscribe protective incantations to assist travelers in encounters on the road.

A variety of occult sources seem to confirm that this garment is indeed covered in such incantations. The text has yet to be fully translated, and it appears that in some areas there has been writing placed upon writing. Even so, evidence points to five incantations written invoking the forces of the Five Directions:

Front: An appeal to the Hare of the North. A plea for the Hare’s sharp senses and discernment for protection from vampires, ghouls, and hungry ghosts.
Back: An appeal to the Phoenix of the South. The text describes an intention to find joy and wisdom through reflection on past lives and experiences.
Right: An appeal to the Great Eastern Trees, perhaps of the Mineral Folk lands. A request to find stillness to navigate times of confusion.
Left: An appeal to the Mountains of the West, in all likelihood the mountain ranges near Giants’ Rocks. The text describes a desire for more time to find clarity of purpose.
Hood: An appeal to the sky. Here the text refers to the sky as a being named Kish, which supplies some provenance to its antiquity. That name fell from common use centuries ago. This section is the most challenging to translate, both due to both incomplete understanding of the ancient language and the accumulated layers of writing over the ages.

Sources indicate that the three colors of these garments represent ever-renewing time–morning, noon, and night. It may be that travelers chose their color in accordance with the time of day they might be traveling. Yet more esoteric texts suggest that there was a magical component to the color choice. In some traditions, the red pigment assisted the wearer in finding new truths. The white pigment supported internal reflection and insight. The gray pigment aided discernment.

Get the Gray, White, or Red hoddie in my Etsy store!

I’m excited to get to work with Project Jericho again on a residency in which students will explore a better world through visual storytelling!

Project Jericho’s slogan is Art Changes Lives, and they mean it. Every program I’ve collaborated on with them has been a rich and meaningful experience.

Here’s a collection of videos made from students’ work in Sketching the Soundtrack, a workshop series I led with Project Jericho over the last two years:

If you live in the Springfield, Ohio area and have a teen who is interested in exploring art, you won’t regret signing them up for this program. Contact Erin (here on the staff page) to sign up!