Finding the Philosopher's Stone

What is the Philosopher's Stone, and why has its pursuit endured for millennia? Join this livestream talk to find out.

This online talk moves through the architecture of alchemy – its symbolic systems, material experiments and metaphysical ambitions – tracing a lineage from the Hellenistic world to contemporary practice. Along the way, we'll consider the many forms the Philosopher's Stone has taken: a substance, a process, a state of consciousness, an artistic or spiritual achievement.

We'll look closely at the strange methods alchemists devised in their attempts to realise the Stone: from body modification, to the drawing of sigils and encoded diagrams, to the use of fermented substances believed to harbour latent vital forces. 

Seen together, these practices reveal alchemy as a hybrid field where experimentation, imagination and devotion converge. The Philosopher's Stone hovers at the edge of impossibility, and it is precisely this condition that opens a space for radical creativity. The quest does not resolve; it deepens, expands and continually renews itself across time.

This talk invites you into an ongoing, unfinishable pursuit – one that transforms the seeker as much as the sought, and suggests that the true 'great work' may lie in our capacity to pursue the impossible. Book now.

Live online with replay

This talk will be recorded. You will find the recording link in your College Account within two working days - an email will alert you when it is ready. The recording will be available for replay for three months following the event. Please see our terms for more information.