Artist Statement

Rev. Illuminatus Maximus

Welcome to the Gnostic Friends Network (http://www.gnosticshock.com), online home of occult researcher and visionary artist Rev. Illuminatus Maximus.
Originally conceived in 1996 as an educational resource for questioning Christians, the GFN today serves primarily as an outlet for Rev Max’s ongoing fascination with the suppressed mythopoetic narratives of the ancient Gnostic heretics.
SITE GOALS & STRATEGIES

The exploration [...]

Key Concepts

Cognitive frames of reference informing the design and purpose of this web site:

Antinomianism – taboo-breaking as a means to wisdom, e.g., the “transgression” of Georges Bataille, Ikkyu , the “left hand” or “short path” of Tantra and Vamamarga.
Animism – the underlying assumption of indigenous shamanism is that everything is alive and capable of communication: rocks, [...]

Rev Max Interview by Tim Boucher

Rev Max (a pseudonym) is the deranged mind behind Enemies.com, the weird art website which first exposed me to gnostic myths and symbols in the late 1990’s. I didn’t actually get really into gnostic thought until several years later, but I always really loved Max’s out-there artistic vision. So I was very excited when earlier [...]