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The San Diego Art Institute (SDAI) is pleased to invite Al Ridenour, author of The Krampus and the Old, Dark Christmas: Roots and Rebirth of the Folkloric Devil for a lecture and slideshow. The event will take place on Thursday, December 15 from 6pm-8pm at San Diego Art Institute, 1439 El Prado in Balboa Park. The event is $10 or free to SDAI Members.

Thanks to the merciless marketing of a certain film to moviegoers last Christmas, most Americans now know something about the Krampus -- or think they do.   Even as those cinematic horror tropes muddy the waters, there’s a growing domestic subculture eager to enjoy a more authentically European take on the Krampus tradition.  Over the last several years, dozens of costumed Krampus runs have sprung up in assorted American cities, including exceptionally robust activity in Los Angeles, where visiting members of European troupes have marched alongside their American counterparts in devilish, switch-swinging camaraderie.

The creative force behind LA’s annual Krampus Run, artist and writer Al Ridenour, will speak on the topic of the Krampus and his newly published book The Krampus and the Old, Dark Christmas. Along with the history and mythology of this creature, he’ll explore the figure’s folkloric background in the superstition-drenched Christmas season of old Germany and Austria, nights haunted by ghostly processions, forest spirits, witches, and werewolves.  The talk will be accompanied by slides from Ridenour’s richly illustrated book, rare archival video clips and costume examples.

This event is sponsored, in part, by the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture.