Cat Priestesshood of Pussiopolis – Part II

The Power of Holofelinity underlies “transubstantiation” throughout the cosmos and all its ages.


Transubstantiation, a power ascribed to the Eucharist within the Catholic Mass, transforms bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ.  It is to be noted that only that which IS the Lord Jesus Christ himself is transubstantiatied.  In communion, neither Jesus’s loin cloth (technical name, “Perizoma”) nor his crown of thorns are tasted by the faithful – only his body and his blood.  This is because transubstantiation only metamorphoses the body but does not transform the objects that belong to that body. 

In the final days of the Cat Planet, the Cat Priestesses found themselves in a terrible predicament:  Theirs was a power of transubstantiation dependent on a magical crystal, the “Orb of Holofelinity”, and if they could escape their doom through transubstantiation they could not take the Orb with them, and so they took a chance doing something that had been made taboo since time immemorial upon Lemewria:  They chose to translate themselves into the Orb of Holofelinity itself.  Doing this would shatter the Orb and also they could never return to their physical forms, but the most important thing – the power of Holofelinity – would be preserved.  That power they would not allow the Reptilians to destroy.

Lyran Space Kitten escaping exploding Lemewria in the final conflagration of the Disco-Lyran Wars.

A central motif throughout Arthur C. Clarke’s writings is the evolution of human consciousness through extraterrestrial – and seemingly divine – influences.  In 2001: A Space Odyssey we are introduced to the “Monoliths”.  These mysterious dark metallic oblong objects appear consequentially and seem to bestow a decisive blessing resulting in an evolutionary leap in consciousness:  Immediately after touching the monolith in curiosity, the primitive early man (indeterminate hominid?) picks up the femur of a tapir and strikes his enemy dead:  The use of tools. 

Like the Monoliths of 2001, the Catoliths appeared on Earth mysteriously before the dawn of human civilization, before humans as we know ourselves existed.  These were the shards of the Orb of Holofelinity that had transubstantiated from Lemewria to Earth.  These shards were the Cat Priestesses themselves, the consciousness of the Cat Priestesses lived within these mighty crystals.  The crystals took the form of tall, elegant, mystical cat statues that evoked the beautiful forms of the Lyran Cat Priestesses.  The design of the Catolith Cat Statue of Cathenge is a replica of the ancient Catolith of the Cat Priestesses, the Catolith formed from the Orb of Holofelinity.  The Catolith is the sacred icon of Holofelinity, Universal Cat Consciousness.

The Catoliths materialized on Earth at carefully chosen geographic coordinates that would amplify the Power of Holofelinity.  There were only 9 Catoliths, and their locations are no longer certain – some may have been under the sea or deep within caves, but in Africa it was upon the banks of the Nile in Ancient Egypt that a Catolith stood.  The Cat Priestesses, now consciousness bound to crystals, were pleasantly surprised by the pliability of life on Earth.  Here was a primeval planet, beautiful, rich in resources, and with a pre-existing abundance of complex genetic diversity, yet no civilization whatsoever – all of Earth’s creatures were just animals. 

The Cat Priestesses found that their minds could play here freely and that they could not only invest their consciousness into the life forms a round them and thereby experience physical existence once again, but that they could, using their minds, manipulate the DNA of all living things on Earth.  This is how they became the animal headed Egyptian Gods.  They melded the humanoid Lyran form (yes, lyrans were humanoid – but with feline characteristics) with animal forms – somewhat whimsically.

The Cat Priestesses created human beings to be the vessels of Lyran consciousness – their consciousness –  and to fulfill the Lyran impulse to create physically.  The early civilizations of Lemewria and Catlantis were formed by the humans newly mutated from an existing hominid race (like Neanderthal or Cro-Magnon).  Cat Lords and Cat Priestesses were beautiful humans with cat heads and other feline characteristics.  This drastic difference in morphology denoted their higher rank and power – they were the “gods” on Earth who carefully taught the newly created humans the arts of Civilization, and inculcated the Lyran ethos of beauty and pleasure before all else, and the practical principle of Holofelinity. 

I’m running out of time for describing the practical use of Holofelinity, but I think that it is summed up well in this clip from “The Cat from Outer Space” (Disney, 1978);

Cathenge at Burning Man 2022!

Cathenge made it back to Black Rock City this year, 2022! This installation of three Catoliths facing outward surrounding a fire brazier was placed at 3:30 and Esplanade in Black Rock City. The installation was smaller and more intimate than the 2019 Cathenge installation that featured six cats in a 100′ circle. The intimacy of the installation, and the fire brazier burning in the center, provided opportunities for late night gatherings where the Mysteries of Holofelinity, the Cat Priestesshood of Pussiopolis and many other subjects were discussed.

This Burning Man installation was kind of a “Victory Lap” for the forthcoming installation at Patricia’s Green Park in Hayes Valley, San Francisco, and also a test of the new 3D prints and the new interactive electronic sound and light system In order to produce a version of Cathenge strong enough to stand outside in San Francisco for one year the Catoliths had to be redesigned and reprinted completely. The 3D printed cats you see here are a more refined and durable version of what was presented in 2019. Careful work was done in the 3D modeling to produce a “2 ply cat”, that is to say, the print has an outer layer and an inner layer as well as a layer of “infill”. The skin of the Catolith is effectively 1/2″ thick, and the Catolith’s sections all join together neatly with a system of interlocking laps.

3D model of Catolith in Cinema 4D interface showing the interconnection system using laps.

Another important improvement for the new and improved Cathenge is the “Holofelinity Interactive Light and Sound Sculpture.” The Catoliths feature “interactive harmonic purring” which is a central part of the Cathenge concept. At Burning Man we were most gratified to find that the purring system kept functioning for the entire week without any failure. This was a great testament to the careful electronic engineering by Theremin Barney and programming and sound design by Jacob Tonski. Great teamwork all around!

Speaking of teamwork, I certainly didn’t do this alone. Many thanks to everyone that helped make it happen out at Black Rock City:

  • Hannah Wise was a great assistant, and really my right hand woman in making sure this thing got out to the Playa and got put up. She did a great job, went through a lot, worked hard, and saw it through.
  • Theremin Barney was – as always – indefatigable and unwavering in his support and with his incredible electronic skills resolved problems that perhaps no one else could. Thanks to Barney the interactive sound system functioned all week.
  • Jacob Tonski did loads of last minute wiring and troubleshooting for Cathenge’s installation on the Playa. While Jacob did not come out to the Burn, he was instrumental to making it a success and is a key collborator for the installation at Patricia’s Green.
  • Phoenix Fatale did whatever was needed to make sure Cathenge happened. Very grateful to have had her help with the project.
  • Mark Wurtzel helped by bringing the fire brazier and gave his loyal, energetic support to the project throughout the week.
  • Kian Tabrizi put in long hours with me assembling the Catoliths in the middle of the night when the installation was completed on opening Sunday.
  • Many thanks to Opal Essence and the others at Dustfish Camp for hosting the installation.
  • Special thanks to Marian Goodell – “Always a fan of Cathenge” – for being key in making it happen.

Cathenge (2019 – 2022) has been made possible by generous support from:

  • San Francisco Arts Commission
  • Kathryn and Lewis Shepherd
  • Burning Man Foundation
  • Institute of Crazyology
  • Ben Nehmadi

Cat Temple for Burning Man 2022

Cathenge Cat Temple installation for Burning Man 2022 to be located at 3:30 and Esplanade in collaboration with Dustfish Theme Camp

Very, very pleased to announce that Cathenge will return to Black Rock City in 2022! We are producing a more compact version of the 2019 Cat Temple with the new and improved “2.0 Catoliths” that have been developed for the forthcoming Patricia’s Green public art installation in Hayes Valley, San Francisco. As per the illustration above, the Cats will stand on a triangular platform with a fire brazier in the center.

Cat Temple services will be conducted from 2AM to 6AM from Monday – Monday of the Burning Man Festival. In the wee hours of the morning, night cats will gather around the Burning Brazier of Holofelinity, warm themselves, drink kava, receive the Blessings of the Cat Priestesses, and learn secrets of the lost extraterrestrial cat civilization of Ancient Catlantis.

Don’t miss it!!!!!

Kindly support the Cat Temple for Burning Man 2022! You can make a tax-deductible donation to the Cathenge GoFundMe Campaign here:
https://gofund.me/d5deea84

Link for Cathenge Fundraiser

This year Cathenge will focus on developing and expanding the Cat Priestesshood of Pussiopolis:

  • Cat Priestess Training and Rituals
  • Kava Service (2 AM to 6 AM whenever possible . . . )
  • Exploration of the Principles of Holofelinity
  • Cat Chakra Meditation
  • Feline History Lectures
  • Brazier of Holofelinity

If you are interested in being a Cat Priestess or otherwise helping the Cathenge Cat Temple of Pussiopolis at Burning Man 2022 contact:

Contact page for Cathenge.net – leave a message please.

Catolith Manifestation at the Fluffy Cloud Experience! Saturday July 23rd 2022!

Catolith Manifestation at the Fluffy Cloud Experience! Saturday July 23rd 2022!

Two new and improved Catoliths will appear tonight at the Fluffy Cloud Experience. Fluffy Cloud is an immersive light and sound installation first debuted at Burning Man in 2019. The event will be held at the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond.

This Catolith appearance is a fundraiser for Cathenge for Burning Man 2022:

https://gofund.me/d5deea84

Drawing of Cathenge installation for Burning Man 2022. Catoliths will appear prominently on the Esplanade@3:33

Donations to Cathenge are tax deductible through the Institute of Crazyology, a 501(c)3 non profit arts organization.

New and Improved Catolith 2.0 with full moon and laser Cat Chakras!

3D Printer Setup for Cathenge Production

Creality CR-10 S5 large format 3D printer being modified for Cathenge production.

I’m setting up a print farm of 7 of these CR-10 S5 printers. This is the first one which I am testing modifications on. This printer has a 500*500*500 mm build space, however the stock print bed only heats a 300*300 area, so I have upgraded this with a 500*500 heat mat. I also added the crossbraces since I anticipate that as the print grows tall and the load heavy that the z-axis will need all the reinforcement it can get.

Next up: I will replace the bowden style extruder with a direct drive extruder for greater printing efficiency and capability.

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3D Printing Catoliths 2022

These feet of a “Mini-Kittolith” are one of the very first things I printed since resolving to undertake on my own the printing of Cathenge for Patricia’s Green myself. 

I’ve opted to print Cathenge myself. It’s a big undertaking – typically people print something the size of an action figure, but it’s possible to do much larger things, and so I’m printing all 6 Catoliths. Doing the printing myself gives me the latitude to experiment with the design and the technique and that is essentially what artistic control is about.

I was able to source high quality yet inexpensive large format 3D printers (Creality CR-10 S5) which give me a 500*500*500 mm build space to work with. I am setting up seven of these printers at my studio in Stinson Beach. Using all seven printers at once I estimate I can produce one cat in 3 days. I’ll begin production of Catoliths by the second week of April and hazard to guess I’ll finish all six Catoliths within a month.

Of course, I get to keep the printers which opens up a whole new world of artistic possibilities for me. Building on my long experience in 3D modeling, I envision new “Crazyological” sculptures 3D printed and embellished with paint, lighting effects, interactivity and/or kinetics. It’s quite exciting!

Cathenge Prototype in David Normal Studio Spring 2019

This 3D printed Catolith prototype “Kittolith”. Printed by Christopher Christensen. This prototype features motion activated interactive purring by Theremin Barney. Ultimately, we settled on touch sensitivity through “Capacitive Sensing” as the mechanism of interactivity for the large Catoliths at Cathenge, Black Rock City 2019.

Photos by Dennis Helladanko and Damon Bivianos

Los Angeles photographers, Dennis Helladanko and Damon Bivianos, documented Cathenge with these stunning photos.

Cat Priestess Saya dances at Cathenge!

Installation creator David Normal at Cathenge.

David Normal with Cat Priestesses at Catolith Fortuna with a cocked head.