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I was 16 in 1981 and living in Australia which was then a good decade behind the rest of the world in terms of art and culture. During the late 70s I somehow discovered the work of two British fantasy illustrators Rodney Matthews and Patrick Woodroffe and through them the swords and sorcery novels of Michael Moorcock - all three of these gentlemen were precursors of what became the goth aesthetic. With the discovery of the works of Swiss surrealist painter HR Giger (the late and great) I was well on my way to Gothdom.
But I had always been a somewhat serious, mature and spooky child, obsessed with ancient Egypt, archaeology and history. When all my peers were still playing tag I was in the school library reading about the unwrapping of Tutankhamun's mummy. i also went through a long period where I was secretly obsessed with the occult to the point where I tried to conjour demons. (I'm now an atheist btw) So I guess I'e always been goth. The black clothes and chunky silver rings came later as did my love of poetry and Shakespeare.
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