Who is H.E.X.?

Mission Statement

Who is H.E.X.?
"And pitch-black, in the darkness, we all looked the same."  —Pablo Neruda, Winters Encounter

H.E.X. Collective LLC is a fertile ground where the displaced, the divergent, and the alternative gather; a sanctuary, not a gate to be kept.

We are a non-religious or ritualistic, queer and femme-led  coven. More than an organization—we are a statement—addressing societal and communal disparities that continue to edit, censor, and dictate us, even in the most intimate sphere of creativity. 

Why H.E.X.?

We chose H.E.X. as both name and spell. Its letters root in Latin:

  • Hortus — the garden, a place of cultivation, creation, and wild growth.
  • Est — “is,” the binding word, the verb of being that unites seed to soil, idea to form.
  • Xenodochium — a house of strangers, a sanctuary for outsiders, a refuge for those who do not belong anywhere else.

Together, Hortus Est Xenodochium means “The Garden Is a Refuge.” This is the essence of our collective: a fertile ground where the displaced and the divergent gather—where art grows from exile.

H.E.X. is not just an acronym, but a declaration — that in the hidden, the foreign, and the estranged, there is beauty worth cultivating.

Structure & Membership

Members: femme or queer-identifying artists, and/or allies with a shared interest in dark/occult aesthetics.

  • Collaborative Model: Each member contributes to the sustainability of the collective through shared dues, labor, and decision-making.
  • Diversity of Practice: Members may work across mediums—painting, sculpture, writing, fashion, sound, and installation, and more.
  • Annual Elected Positions: We will use annual positions to keep our members focused and directly involved.

Vision

We are building something living—an ecosystem rooted in mutual support, accessibility, and collective growth. A space where our artists retain agency over their work, where their labor is respected, skill can be honed, and  community is not a byproduct, but rather the ground from which we grow.

Like a night garden. We do not fear the dark, for that is where healing happens and creation begins.

This coven exists for artists that are Queer, and/or Queer-allied, Leftist, Punk, Post Punk, Goth, and/or Goth-adjacent. Artists who are drawn to subcultures of horror, irreligious and anti-establishment lifestyle—pushed to the dark fringes of creativity. Artists who have been misrepresented based on aesthetic and content rather than intent and, therefore, overlooked due to societal discomfort. Many of us have been made to feel like outsiders in traditional art spaces by those who still think black is the absence of color—while we understand it to be the totality of it.

As a new collective, we promise to strive toward cultivating a safe, affirming community for our members to express themselves in ways that are both transformative and healing. 

Space Usage

We currently exist in the ethers—that is to say, we lack a physical space—using pop-ups as our way of gathering and working together.

We have been diligently searching for and viewing spaces, applying for grants, saving, gathering members to strengthen our fortitude, and toying with the notion of crowdfunding—because we believe what we’re forming is important and needed. It deserves a space to thrive.

The physical space will serve as:

  • Art Studio: Communal workstations, shared materials, and equipment for individual and collaborative projects.
  • Gallery: Rotating exhibitions showcasing member work and invited guest artists.
  • Retail: Weekend store sales, occasional and thematic pop-up markets featuring art, zines, fashion, jewelry, and other hand-crafted pieces.
  • Community Events: Meetings, collaborative events with other establishments and outside artists, classes, and additional scenarios as the collective sees fit.

Contact

H.E.X. welcomes inquiries and comments, suggestions and assistance—so please feel free to reach out to us with any questions regarding the above information, membership, current status, or any other points you may have.

 

J. M. Liles

Co-President

H.E.X. Collective LLC


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