5.25.2010

The Digital Age will be the Death of Us

Recently, on my youtube channel, I received a request from another youtube user to subscribe to their channel because they "want to be a youtube star." I watched a portion of one of the individual's videos and as I was viewing it I noticed I was becoming more and more irritated with what I was watching. As an artist, I was critically analyzing the piece and I thought the graphic aspect was done well while the self-centered/reflective aspect was annoyingly asinine, especially given the lack of genuine humor emitting from what appeared to be a self-deprecating monologue. What bothered me most was an attempt at humor which was completely absent. In all fairness, I should provide a link to the user's channel to let you the reader formulate your own opinion, but I don't want to boost the person's view count allowing them to become a "youtube" star, nor do I want to contribute to making them a "youtube" star.

Why, you ask?

Completely fair question. The digital age has afforded us a luxury that society was completely devoid of until the mid- to late 1990s. With the advent of consumer grade/quality technology, average Americans, who never before possessed knowledge of media technology & theory, have inundated the Internet with gratuitously vapid digital media. As an artist schooled in the foundational arts (sculpture, photography, printmaking, drawing, painting, et cetera), I have been fortunate to study the masters in all disciplines getting a broad and vast education. This cannot be said with everyone bombarding the Internet with their vacuous digital media. Not only is the Internet a place guilty of aiding in the degeneration of America and the world, but television is at it in a more insidious manner. Reality TV has become a bastion for the imbecilic, the idiotic and the ignorant. What's more disturbing is that people watch these shows, some for the escapist reward that a half hour or an hour episode provides, but others watch these shows because their lives offer them no stimulation, no interest and they must feast on the moral turpitude these shows simulate for them to feel better about themselves. What people fail to understand is that Reality TV is only simulacra, but with the influx of some new technological gadget every week or so, it is all that is offered to provide some semblance of solace.

This is why the Digital Age will be the Death of Us. Not many people can remember a phone number aside from 9-1-1 anymore, I admittedly being one of them. I feel for the generations growing up within the Digital Age that will have no grounding in the older analog forms media was once. I not only feel for them, I fear for them. Yes, our lives and world are changing. It can be argued for better or for worse, but evolving has never been easy, just ask the old knuckle draggers and T-Rex. I remember a child that was learning how to tell time, unfortunately their parent taught them on a digital clock and when they were in a house with an analog clock they were completely at a loss. They couldn't fathom why the clock didn't tell them the time, or more accurately, why they couldn't tell time with the analog clock. This is but one example of what the Digital Age is doing to us. I am neither for or against the Digital Age per se, if I had to make a choice I'd go back to the Analog Age. We have become such a hurried and impersonal species with digital technology that I long for the days when my hand didn't cramp from filling out a check, ironic enough I know that I am blogging. I don't dislike the Digital Age, I have created some wonderful work digitally. It's the coming generations that I worry about, needlessly probably, but I still worry, they will have no recollection of things analog only what is written about them in history books or other texts and tomes. They will be borne into a world with a digital nipple in their mouths and they will be none the wiser. But, with that said, if digital technology continues to physically separate instead of connect individuals, then our species will definitely fall victim to our own constructs. We may evolve into something altogether different and adaptable to technology without the need for that physical connectivity, but as a species that is social, becoming anti- or unsocial does not seem to be part of the greater equation.

5.24.2010

FLABmag

Check out the newest updates June 1st! FLABmag.com

5.07.2010

May (NAISA) and June (SuperFly), 2010

So we are into May already! Wow, time has kinda of snuck by me and the Native American Indigenous Studies Association conference is closely upon us. In just over a week I head to Tucson for the conference and a meeting with a few scholars, most importantly a meeting with Dr. Philip Deloria to discuss the American Studies PhD Program at the University of Michigan as well as with Dr. Vince Diaz, it'll be nice to see Vince again. I will also get to meet with Dr. Joanna Hearne from the University of Missouri, busy time. I need to remember to schedule sometime with the sun! I think I'll have plenty of time on the 19th since I'm getting in at around noon. Currently, I am working on my presentation for the conference as well as getting some new video works in the fire for my upcoming exhibit at the Museum for Contemporary Native Art in Santa Fe in August.

Next month will be my fourth year returning to mentor at Longhouse Media/Native Lens SuperFly program, this is hands down my favorite event ever. I'd take this over winning awards any day. I think the youth are the ones that make this event special for me, they amaze me every year. It will be a busy upcoming three weeks, but I look forward to it all and am excited at the prospects.

That is what's on the plate for the next month, aside from my daily grind! See you in Tucson and Seattle, Lummi Country!