Author: jo

Barren and Fruitful Signs

by  • 

At the fag-end of this luscious autumn, with the scent of rotting apples in the air, and a surprising, last flush of magenta roses on the other side of the pond, my thoughts have turned, briefly, to fertility. Here is what the English Renaissance astrology William Lilley, had to say about the fecundity or otherwise of the signs. Aries By reason Mars, a sterill planet hath that for his house, and the Sun for Exaltation, is rather a Sign of Barrennesse than otherwise. Taurus Is reputed more fruitful than barren, being the house of Venus, who is fruitful, and the exaltation […]

The post Barren and Fruitful Signs appeared first on The Oxford Astrologer.

Read more →

Terrorism, the Discovery of Chiron and Great Art

by  • 

Chiron, the erratic asteroid that weaves between Uranus and Saturn, was discovered on November 1, 1977 on a photographic plate that had been taken on October 18. That second date might just ring a bell for you if you happen to be interested in contemporary art – because it’s also the collective title of some of the most famous works of art about terrorism ever made. Gerhard Richter’s weird, grungy pictures grouped under the title 18. Oktober 1977 reimagine the demise of Germany’s notorious Baader-Meinhof gang. On that day, three members of the gang were found dead in jail — as depicted in Richter’s compellingly creepy series. Officially it was suicide, but the circumstances […]

The post Terrorism, the Discovery of Chiron and Great Art appeared first on The Oxford Astrologer.

Read more →

Women on Top: Venus in Power

by  • 

I got excited a while ago when I noticed that Brazilian premier Dilma Rousseff, Ukraine’s ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and Korean PM Park Geun-hye all have Venus in Capricorn, the sign of earthly power. I wondered if there would be more women at the top of the political tree with this placement. Alas no, Venus in the charts of female elected heads of state turns up just about anywhere — except Leo. However, Venus ought to tell us something about what makes someone popular enough to get elected. Since I’d already done all the research, I thought you might like to have a look […]

The post Women on Top: Venus in Power appeared first on The Oxford Astrologer.

Read more →

John Steinbeck’s Three-way Split

by  • 

I split myself into three people. I know what they look like. One speculates and one criticizes and the third tries to correlate. It usually turns out to be a fight but out of it comes the whole week’s work. And it is carried on in my mind in dialogue. It’s an odd experience. Under such circumstances it might be one of those schizophrenic symptoms but as a working technique, I do not think it is bad at all. – John Steinbeck John Steinbeck’s clean, spare prose is pared right down. Every writer needs an inner editor and the nerve […]

The post John Steinbeck’s Three-way Split appeared first on The Oxford Astrologer.

Read more →

Angela Merkel: The She-Chancellor

by  • 

Angela Merkel, Germany’s Kanzlerin or she-chancelllor, is indisputably the most powerful woman in the world. And yet she seems so wildly unlike most politicians – where are the flashy smile, the clotheshorse spouse, the sharp suit, the soundbite? Yes, where are Silvio Berlusconi, Nicolas Sarkozy, Jose Luis Zapatero, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown…? Sacked by the electorate. Every other European leader has been replaced since the banking crisis started in 2007; only Angela Merkel, the “grey mouse” from East Germany, has not just survived but thrived in these tough times. Clearly, her appeal to (at least half of) the German electorate is profound. And […]

The post Angela Merkel: The She-Chancellor appeared first on The Oxford Astrologer.

Read more →

Get Serious About Saturn in Scorpio

by  • 

Saturn in Scorpio September 13, 1924 – December 2, 1926  October 22, 1953 – January 12, 1956 May 13, 1956 – October 10, 1956  November 29, 1982 – May 6, 1983 August 24, 1983 – November 16, 1985  October 5, 2012 – December 23, 2014 June 14, 2015 – September 17, 2015 Solar eclipse at 0°25 Scorpio — October 23 2014  Saturn has been in Scorpio for two years, and is now on his final tour through the last third of the sign. The old man is hobbling along rapidly too, and he’ll be out of Scorpio just before Christmas. So […]

The post Get Serious About Saturn in Scorpio appeared first on The Oxford Astrologer.

Read more →

Brian Eno’s Creative Drive: Randomness and Order

by  • 

  Since his first work as a feather-clad glam-rocker in the art-school band Roxy Music in the early 1970s to his latest incarnation as producer of extraordinary “generative” music apps, Eno has been a dynamo of ideas, energy and experiment. He is incredibly prolific. If you look at his discography, it seems as if he must have been working continuously since 1970, as producer, composer and performer (although seldom outside the studio). A pioneer of electronic music, he proved that you didn’t have to be a “musician” to make music. Years ago, Eno tried to get the job title “non-musician” put […]

The post Brian Eno’s Creative Drive: Randomness and Order appeared first on The Oxford Astrologer.

Read more →

Lights, Camera, Roar

by  • 

It’s silly to guess a profession by Sun sign. But this is the silly season – and there are an awful lot of film directors born under the sign of the Lion. Creative, passionate, theatrical, charismatic – and with a big vision — it figures. So this week’s birthdays include Alfred Hitchcock, Roman Polanski, Cecil B DeMille, Ben Affleck, Wim Wenders and two great actors turned directors Robert Redford and Gene Kelly. Sun in Leo Gus Van Sant Nanni Morretti Peter Bogdanovich Gabriele Salvatore John Huston Wes Craven (Venus-Pluto conjunction in Leo) Moon in Leo Peter Jackson Forrest Whitaker Clint Eastwood Ken […]

The post Lights, Camera, Roar appeared first on The Oxford Astrologer.

Read more →