Fenrir

What transformative potential still lies dormant in myths and fairy tales?

In the winter of 2022/23 I studied Celtic and Germanic myths. I was particularly interested in stories in which the relationship between humans and nature was not simply one of domination but rather a creative field, in which the strength and power of nature was regarded from a wide variety of perspectives. Accordingly, I also looked for myths that questioned humanities` place within the cosmos.

Generally, I am fascinated by the question of how stories can subtly or overtly influence a culture. Societies or cultures that were firmly anchored in certain mythologies can be an inspiring entry point into this question. How did such a narrative culture gradually develop and bring forth stories that were neither strictly dogmatic nor relegated to the realm of mere dreaming, imagination or psyche? Stories that were not simply consumed but were woven into rituals, triggering powerful affects within us and fueling our imagination; stories that comforted and inspired, because they made it possible to negotiate those phenomena of our existence that were not immediately comprehensible, that pointed beyond us, that were, so to speak, “bigger” than us.

Instinctively, I began to interpret the stories I found from a contemporary perspective. The symbols and motifs they contained sparked my imagination and I eventually toyed with the idea of using the material from certain Germanic myths as inspiration for new stories.