Katarzyna Majak‘s “Women of Power” photography series captures the faces and dress of earth-worshipping Polish women who are powerful among their particular spiritual sectors. The vast majority of Poland’s people (90%) are practicing Catholics. When Christianity was introduced to Poland a few centuries ago, it erased most traces of paganism, witchcraft, and shamanic traditions. The women Majak photographs – ranging in age from their 30′s to their 80′s – represent the very small minority of Polish women who practice alternative spirituality. For many of these women, this series depicts their first public display of power. They “practice a wide range of spiritual paths and spiritual systems. A few are traditional healers (so called ‘whisperers’ who mix religion with primeval superstitions to heal and remove spells using prayers) whose traditions survived on the Belarusian border. Some are women who had grandmothers who could ‘see’ or were herbal healers and who are working to revive what would otherwise be dead traditions.”

Porter Contemporary, where Majak’s work was featured in 2012, writes, “When asked what being a witch meant to one of the subjects in the series, she replied ‘A witch is a woman of knowledge who takes a broom and sweeps to cleanse the world.’” (via feature shoot)

02-Natalia-LL-an-Artist-at-times-a-Witch-from-Women-of-Power-series 03-Majak-Bea-the-One-who-Listens-to-the-woods-from-Women-of-Power-series 06-Elwinga-a-Druid-from-Women-of-Power-series 01.-Maria-a-Healer-and-a-Visionary-from-Women-of-Power-series 07-Maria-video-still-from-Women-of-Power-series 05-Kasia-Emilia-the-One-who-Is-from-Women-of-Power-series 04-majak-Paraskiewa-a-whisperer-from-Women-of-Power-seriesThe post Katarzyna Majak’s Portraits Of Modern Witches appeared first on Beautiful/Decay