We live in a wondrous age. We also live in an age that can be pretty daunting if not at times downright terrifying and exhausting.
Through technology we have the world and it’s collective knowledge at our fingertips. We also have continual news that is a slave to the need to get you to click and so pumps out nonstop sensationalism and feeds collective paranoia, division and tribalism.
We have more entertainment than we can possibly consume in a hundred lifetimes. While also being overwhelmed by choice to the point where we probably spend as much time trying to decide what to watch or read or do, as actually doing it. And this tsunami of entertainment makes finding the things that resonate with us amongst a sea of formulaic content all the more difficult.
As creators we now have the ability to reach out directly to a worldwide audience. And so does every other creator. We’re all jumping up and down and waving our arms in the air trying to get noticed.
All that being said, I’m an optimist and I think overall the good outweighs the bad.
And in an increasingly tech driven homogenous world, I believe in the individual.
Being fickle flawed human beings we tend to stumble through change, always running to keep up.
Technology will continue to grow and evolve and so will we, albeit, continually playing catch up. I’ve grown up through the most momentous changes and advances the world has seen. But every generation grows up through change of one form or another and the world rolls on.
I firmly believe that 99% of people are good people (not an actual statistic but based on 59 years of anecdotal evidence) and we’ll all be alright in the end. We’ll stop destroying the only planet we have and the 1% who are hell bent on ruining it for the rest of us, won’t.
I believe in the ability of the individual to make a mark on this world. That doesn’t mean you have to find a cure for cancer (but obviously I’m all for that if that’s what you want to do) but rather we can all find a way to contribute to the world through sparks of unique creative expression in whatever field of endeavor we choose to play in.
In this vast ocean of technology and choice, we can find something personal, something that comes from within us. And it’s this unique ability that can lead to great and wonderful things.
Living in a time of sensory and information overload is daunting but speaking as an artist, I’m influenced by everything I take in, I filter and synthesize it and what comes out is unique to me.
And everyone has their something, their way of filtering what they take in and putting out something uniquely personal and human that maybe moves the needle, even just a little bit, for both the individual and for all of us.
I salute all you individuals, each and every one of you 7.888 billion people*. Actually not you 1% of bastards who are trying to mess it up for the rest of us but everyone else.
*Apologies for not mentioning everyone by name.
