The Myth Behind
The Gothic Descent
A library, a guardian and an unfinished descent.
The idea came to me in a dream
Powerful, noisy, sad and full of energy, a gargoyle flew around what looked like my own library: ancient towering walls, uneven floors, a room for workshops, and an unfinished descent into a bright emptiness.
I had assumed it was a Shadow figure. My analyst offered another possibility: perhaps it was my “Daemon” speaking to me.
The guardian of the place
"I am the guardian of the place.
I have been here all along."
It told me when I decided to face it.
Little did I know I would have to undergo a painful descent that remains, even now, partly understood.
Returning to the image
Dreams are a big part of my life. Exploring their images can sometimes feels like a literary exercise: listening to a voice, returning to a scene, noticing what remains unresolved.
That is one of the reasons I love writing so much.
An unfinished descent
The Gothic Descent had been taking shape long before this dream.
What began as a website gathering different aspects of the Gothic gradually became an exploration of why it draws us in, how it accompanies life’s transitions, and how it offers space and language for grief.
Exploring this dream with my analyst helped me make sense of what this imaginary place within me might mean at that moment in my life. Months later, I dreamed of descending and discovering different catacombs. I have recently come to see this second dream as a continuation of the first, a connection that is helping me give further shape to the project.