A Fiery Proposal
For those versed in Western esoteric traditions, the East is typically the starting point for directional correspondences. So, why did we begin our Quintessence project with the South Gate?
A few factors influenced this decision:
Geography: Given our location in Alabama, a Southern regional event like Love Burn offered a more convenient and cost-effective option for our first installation, and allow us to go through the learning process of building, transporting, and setting up an installation in a more accessible destination than the Black Rock Desert. Naturally, we would build the South Gate for a Southern event.
Form: The South Gate experienced in personal vision has often appeared as a tunnel or portal of lava. This vivid image, inspired by my spiritual practice, made it an accessible starting point for my 3D modeling experiments.
Thematic Alignment: The 2025 Love Burn theme, "The Underworld," perfectly aligned with the fiery, subterranean aesthetic of the South Gate. While the esoteric understanding of the Underworld is an entirely different matter than the South Gate, the visual language of lava and darkness resonated with the event's theme.
With Rassera's input and my foray ino 3D modeling, we began to shape the South Gate, and submitted our proposal for Love Burn 2025!
A draft rendering of the South Gate modeled and textured in Blender by Sarai, submitted as part of our Love Burn proposal.
