Graham St John (PhD). Cultural anthropologist of transformational events, movements and figures. Author of ten books including Strange Attractor: The Hallucinatory Life of Terence McKenna (MIT Press, 2025), and Mystery School in Hyperspace: A Cultural History of DMT (North Atlantic Books 2015). Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Music, Humanities and Media at the University of Huddersfield, and Executive Editor of Dancecult: Journal of Electronic Dance Music Culture.

Global Fetish: The Mirrorball, Hyper-Liminality and Everynight Life

The mirrorball is among the most familiar yet elusive fetishes in modern history. Drawing upon my decades-long experience in the world of raving, clubbing, and transformational festivals, I chronicle the mirrorball and offer a cultural history of the vibe. What was originally patented as the “Myriad Reflector” (1917) has revolved above meeting spaces and dancefloors throughout the twentieth century, becoming an enduring sign of freedom and transformation in the post-disco era. But while a universal icon of “the vibe,” the mirrored globe became a hyperliminal object. A symbol of unity amid difference, the mirrorball is a perfectly fraught symbol. From mirrorsed chandelier to discoball, from high to low culture, from club design to space programs, as a device and metaphor, the mirrorball has served purposes charming and radiant. Omnipresent above disparate dancefloors, reflecting love or exposing tragedy, this enigmatic object has spun a remarkable tale in world nightlife.