Participation mystique refers to the innate human connection to symbolic and imaginative experiences. This symbolic realm exists before or alongside our ability to think analytically or rationally. The idea is strongly linked to projection, as these symbolic or mythic elements naturally extend themselves into the world around us—into people, places, and things, just like how we unconsciously assign color to what we see.

Participation mystique is not just a psychological concept, but an aesthetic principle – a lens through which we perceive art as more than just something we observe; it becomes something inhabited.

In artistic terms, participation mystique can be thought of as a dissolving boundary between the self and the image. In this perspective, any manifestation of art can be perceived not just as an external object, but as an extension of the viewer’s unconscious. Colors, shapes, and atmosphere resonate with inner archetypes – mythical, primordial, emotional – before the mind can name them. This is why abstract compositions can seem hauntingly familiar, or why certain symbols – like a spiral, a doorway, or a shady forest – draw out something ancient, deep, and unconscious from us.

Produced and mixed by Dionis Afonichev (Dionisaf)
Mastered by Dionis Afonichev
Cover picture and design by Dionis Afonichev

Dionisaf - Participation Mystique

Participation Mystique

Distant Shores (Brannan Lane Remix)

Participation Mystique (Philippe Deschamps Remix)

Distant Shores

Moment of Clarity

Natura Sanat (Ancient Astronaut Remix)

Moment of Clarity (KapTep Remix)

Natura Sanat

Experimental ambient music label.

Surreal music for a deep listening experience.

Dionisaf - Participation Mystique

Chitra Records