ANGELUS BY ERICA JAGO AND ROOS VAN DER KAMP
Crowdfunding was invented for projects like Angelus.
The masterfully created Angelus book took our breath away since it first appeared as campaign to raise funds and has captivated us ever since.
Meet the authors and designers behind this beautiful masterwork that combines ancient yoga practices and sublime art, easy to understand and inviting to engage.
Erica Jago described by Roos: Compassionate, Courageous, Ambitious
Roos van der Kamp described by Erica: Imaginative, Peaceful, Willing
Which audience did you have in mind when you put together the concept for ANGELUS?
Teachers and practitioners who love surrealist art and emotionally connected yoga.
How did you come up with the title?
In the book by Paulo Coelho, I Sat by the River Piedra and Wept.
“It must have been around six in the evening, time for the Angelus - a time when light and darkness merge. The sound of the organ echoed through the empty church, blending in my mind with the stones and the images laden with history and with faith. I closed my eyes and let the music flow through me, cleansing my soul of all fear and sin and reminding me that I am always better than I think and stronger than I believe.”
It woke a nerve inside of us upon reading and spoke to the sacred transformation of dark to light that is taught within chakra studies.
What can readers expect from ANGELUS?
While turning the pages, you learn about the chakras in your body from root to crown. As is the case with these powerful energy centers, each chapter is starkly different on a visual, physical, and emotional level. Art intuitively communicates, unlocking new ways of thinking and elevating the way you see reality. By addressing your intuition with visually powerful art and emotionally connected yoga, you experience how the chakras open like doorways into various worlds of ancient wisdom.
The methodology is taught through seven chapters, where each chapter opens with a continuous story about a heroine who emotionally connects with each chakra to find new ways of comforting herself. Each chapter houses three yoga sequences per chakra that is graphically laid out using Asanaglyphs and inspirational cueing with each posture. Each chapter ends with a transformative creative exercise. For beginners, we have created an extensive glossary in the back of the book with over 300 poses that cue anatomical alignment for each yoga posture.
Your favorite part of creating ANGELUS?
Erica: Designing the chakra inspired sequences! Angelus offers you 21 ready-to-use emotionally connected yoga classes. All practices are easy to understand and allow you to experience the subtle energy of the chakras to design your attitudes and thoughts.
Roos: Creating the costumes and getting to travel to insanely beautiful places with our talented photographer Sanja Marusic. These roadtrips were just amazing.
What was the hardest part when finishing up the printing process?
Erica: Nailing the vibrant color swatch! We were limited to the amount of pages we could test so we selected the most complex pages and then sprinkled angel fairy dust on the rest. The results came out better than expected but next run will be slightly altered based on what we see.
NOTE: children love the colors in this book so if you have children at home, order two! Our daughters, whom the book is dedicated too, love using the workbook with crayons. They don’t learn this stuff in school! Inspire them now.
Roos: The waiting game! We experienced delay after delay because we didn’t want to settle for less than perfect…
What is your go-to Yoga or Meditation practice from ANGELUS?
Erica: Chapter Three, the CHOICE Kundalini kriya on page 71 which is practiced lying down on your back. This fiery practice is matched with some though provoking journalling prompts that heal the victim inside of you. I love developing the strength of my core by pushing my limits. By the end you feel daring and want to do something extraordinary every time!
Roos: I love the Emote sequence from chapter 2. Just reading “Feel to heal” is enough for me to realize I need to pause and just be.
What piece of advice would you have given yourselves if you already had experienced the process of birthing ANGELUS?
Roos: In creating the costumes and doing the photography, I wouldn’t have saved the fourth chapter for last. I felt it was hard to bridge first and last part of the book. Next time I would rather work from front to back.
Yoga is … a practice of habit that builds the fire necessary for transformation.
Follow Erica Jago and Roos van der Kamp on instagram and drop in to Instagram Live Sessions, Angelus Hour on Wednesdays
Main Image © Angelus • Blog images by Alian