“Theosophical” Artistic Networks in the Americas, 1920–1950

Latin American scholars have discussed interbellum “Theosophical networks” interested in new forms of spirituality as alternatives to Catholicism, positivism and Marxism. In this article I argue that these networks included not only progressive intellectuals and political activists but also artists in Latin America, the United States and Canada, and that their interests in alternative spirituality contributed significantly to certain artistic currents. I discuss three central locations for these networks, in part involving the same artists: revolutionary Mexico in the 1920s; New York in the late 1920s and 1930s; and New Mexico in the late 1930s and 1940s. The Theosophical Society, the Delphic Society, Agni Yoga and various Rosicrucian organizations attracted several leading American artists involved in the networks.