Join published and exhibited London artist and author Robert John for the launch of Dysmas Orbis, a speculative urban fantasy set within a hidden parallel London.
Robert John has spent years creating a surreal visual version of London through his photographic and digital art practice. His work has been exhibited and published, including LDN Reimagined, a traditionally published art book with Unicorn Publishing Group. Dysmas Orbis is the literary continuation of that visual world — taking the surreal London he created through images and developing it into a five-book speculative fiction series.
The novel explores identity, belonging, relationships, displacement and what it means to be seen, drawing on Robert’s own experiences of growing up in South London and his father’s battle with Parkinson’s disease and dementia.
Expect a London that is recognisable but not quite right — spider trees, flower lamps, giant machines, secret societies and a hidden world existing alongside our own.
The launch will include a Q & A, reading from the novel and a look behind the creation of the book and its visual world. Guests will receive a complimentary drink on arrival and a free special edition A5 art print with every signed first edition of Dysmas Orbis purchased on the night.
Early praise for Dysmas Orbis
“His London is animate, alarming, astonishing.”
— Iain Sinclair
“Gripping and assured… Richly and beautifully written, Dysmas Orbis is a tender story that will keep you turning the pages and stay with you long after the last page.”
— Ivy Ngeow, award-winning author
“A brooding tale of fissured reality where freedom is swallowed whole.”
— Sudhana Singh, award-winning memoirist & journalist
“Prepare to step into a gritty and mythical version of London, with secret societies and spider trees. Robert John has created an alternate London that feels both familiar and fantastical.”
— Tabish Khan, art critic for Londonist
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