John Zorn: Hermetic Cartography at The Drawing Center

Offering profound insight into John Zorn’s creative mind, Hermetic Cartography reveals a new dimension of his artistic practice by showcasing works on paper that span seven decades of his visionary engagement with mark-making, improvisation, and the esoteric.

The exhibition, open February 7–May 11, 2025, includes a diverse array of Zorn’s visual artworks, graphic scores, dense philosophical notations, abstract poetry and artist books, and not only highlights Zorn’s radical approach to marks on paper but also his unique Theatre of Musical Optics and other experimental projects. By exploring these visual elements, the exhibition provides a new perspective on how Zorn's abstract works intersect with and inform his musical compositions.

John Zorn: Hermetic Cartography is accompanied by a series of musical performances curated by Zorn that will be performed in the exhibition. JACK Quartet will be joined by violist Yura Lee and cellist Michael Nicolas for an all-Zorn program on Saturday, May 3 at 7:30pm, free and open to the public.

Program:
Sigil Magick
Prolegomena