ST. PETERSBURG, FL — For more than a decade, Brandy Stark, a St. Petersburg artist, curator and paranormal investigator, has celebrated the darker side of Valentine’s Day through art and community events.

Now in its 11th year, this celebration, which she’s dubbed Valentwe’en, has expanded with a series of events scheduled throughout February.

Inspired by memes that were shared on social media at the time, Stark launched Valentwe’en in St. Petersburg in 2015.

“These memes came out saying that Valentine’s Day was being replaced by second Halloween and it got me thinking,” Stark told Patch. “I thought the two holidays made an interesting mashup, and for folks like myself, who remain quite single, maybe it would resonate and offer something more off-beat to do.”

Valentine’s Day already has dark macabre origins, she added.

St. Valentine — the holiday’s namesake and a priest in the Roman empire during the third century — performed secret marriage ceremonies despite a ban on them at the time. When he was caught, he was clubbed to death and had his head cut off.

“He was killed for performing marriages for people illegally in Rome,” Stark said. “A lot of people don’t realize the really morbid story of St. Valentine.”

This year, her Valentwe’en events kicked off with a presentation, “Love, Spirits and Lore,” by Stark on Jan. 29 at Eckerd College as part of the OLLI program. She also hosted a metaphysical Crystal 101 workshop on Feb. 7.

The centerpiece of Stark’s Valentwe’en celebration is an art show at her studio space at ArtLofts in downtown St. Petersburg. The opening takes place Saturday, Feb. 14, 5 to 9 p.m., during the Second Saturday artwalk.

All pieces in the show are inspired by this year’s theme, “the Siren and her Song” this year.

In addition to the art exhibit, members of her paranormal investigation group, the Spirits of St. Petersburg, will be on hand to share ghost stories.

Lady Darjuxena’s Bats and B.R.E.W.S. Show featuring the gothic goddesses of cosplay belly dance will also perform, and there will be oracle, tarot, and bone readers on hand and live body painting. Costumed members of Krampus Verein Pinellas will also mingle with those attending the show.

Other upcoming Valentwe’en events include:

Haunted History Trolley Tour, Feb. 11, 6:30 to 8 p.m.St. Petersboo Walking Ghost Tour, Feb. 13, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.Roser Park Walking Ghost Tour, Feb. 21, 5:30 and 7 p.m.Art Show Closing, Feb. 28, 5 to 6:30 p.m., at ArtLofts, includes a gothic vow renewal and a presentation on Dump Duke, a grassroots campaign for public power in Pinellas County.

The growth of Valentwe’en this year is a step toward Stark operating her art and paranormal business full-time.

“I’m expanding my offerings and having more events to hopefully get the community backing me,” she said. “Valentwe’en is a good way to do it.”

She hopes to eventually find a permanent home to launch a paranormal museum to showcase local and Florida ghost stories.

A similar museum already exists in St. Augustine, Stark said. “So the idea is there would be the one on the east coast and then St. Petersburg on the west [coast]. In West Central Florida, we’ve got our haunts, too. There’s not one here, but I think it would be a lot of fun. There’s a definite need for it. And if I’m lucky, having it in a haunted location, that would be even better.”