The Dark Aesthetic: Finding beauty, truth, and wisdom in that which is dark, macabre, and horrific, often in conjunction with a sense of humor and a lascivious connotation. The Aesthetic may be expressed in Art, Music, Dance, Fashion, Poetry, or Prose.

Practitioners of the Dark Aesthetic may be seen after twilight in shades of black, white and red. Individually we may have been the outsiders, the fringe, the unpopular in school or society. Together we define this new Dark Aesthetic. Without our raiment of the night and beneath the masks of alabaster, ordinary people will be found. But which is the true self and which is the mask? At dusk do we put on our masks for the night, or do we remove our masks from the day?

Our Mission Statement:

• To present the community's public face to the general population while promoting a positive impression of Gothic Practitioners.

• To introduce new devotees of the Dark Aesthetic to the Houston Community and guide their quest for knowledge.

• To organize events in which to share our appreciation for the Dark Aesthetic.

Rules and Guidelines

1. All are welcome in Houston Gothic.
2. All discourse must be in keeping with the mission statement.
3. There will be no negative comments or personal invectives against any member for any reason. This bad behavior will reduce the community's public image.
4. Moderators have broad powers to enforce the intent of the mission statement. These include: global moderation, individual moderation, probation, suspensions, and banning.
5. The Moderator team takes its job seriously and will give all issues due consideration. As such there may be a slight delay in traffic flow.