zeit·geist
/ˈzītˌɡīst/noun: zeitgeist
The defining spirit or mood of a particular period of history as shown by the ideas and beliefs of the time.
This week’s (months?) photo set is another of Brett. (@goblingoddesss) There are not many that are safe for work so go take a look and sign up if you haven't. Really, you spend more on coffee in a couple days than you would here.
I was having dinner with friends last night and one of them quipped, “There is no more zeitgeist.” Immediately caught my attention. Perfectly encapsulated this shift I’ve been feeling and have been having such a hard time putting into words. I think he’s exactly right. There used to be this, collective consciousness, that was driven by media and pop culture. There were the albums that everyone was listening to, the books that everyone was reading. Fashion, music, art, trends that would tend to start at the coasts and make their way inward towards the center of the country. There were taste makers and trend setters. New York Fashion Week was an eagerly anticipated global event. And W magazine would write about it. The world was smaller. Creators were fewer. The rest of us waited for them to show us what was cool. Music would percolate up from Brooklyn or Compton or London. And Rolling Stone magazine would write about it. Photographers would emerge with a specific and unique vision and PDN magazine would write about it.
Things have changed. In hindsight, it’s probably a gradual slope, but then all at once. . . Covid had something to do with it. And the internet, and social media. The dice have been rattled and cast upon the table and I’m not sure if up is up and down is down. We’re all living in realities of our own making. Self curated silos. And its a brave new world. For a while, social media added to the Zeitgeist. Trends traveled faster. Then somehow along the way, they became irrelevant. Culture went from waves to a vibration. Its all about the vibes man.
So, how do you make a name for yourself or make a living, in a world where everyone is their own curator? Being an artist in a capitalistic society, if you want to eat, you have to make things that people want to consume. But how do you know what to feed them? When everything is moving and shifting as much as it is. Rudderless. . . Or maybe the rudder is a new type of consciousness that I can’t possibly wrap my brain around in this minute.
I hear people like Rick Rubin, (big fan) saying things like, “create purely for yourself” Divorce yourself from any anticipation or desire for external validation. Don’t make what you think your audience wants, but make for yourself. Thats a hard Jelly Belly to swallow for someone like myself that set out on a path to be a commercial image maker. Operative word being commerce. The intersection of art and commerce. How do you align yourself, how do you present yourself as someone who sees and feels things? What do you capture and create and hold up so that the decision makers feel that you’re the person they will choose to hold the camera? I’m not sure exactly what is happening, but it is happening, and it is profound. And its pretty damn fascinating to watch.
I ran into an acquaintance in a coffee shop today and we got to talking about creative matters and makers and community. That now may be a good time to be building. Traditionally, in economic downturns, it was a good time to start something new. Start laying the foundation and the brickwork so that when things picked up, you were positioned to take advantage. For all the talk of a recession or a downturn, it hasn’t materialized. But maybe we’re in a cultural recession. It sure feels like it. I’ve never felt tings as on edge or as divided as we are now. In this election year.
Politics, social issues, health issues. Every single issue that comes up, there’s someone with an opinion different than yours and fuck you and the horse you rode in on. Things that once unified us are now wedges that push us apart. Maybe this is a cycle and they’ll calm down. Maybe after this November, there will be some return to normality, and sanity. Or maybe not. Maybe this is the new normal. Maybe we’re really meant to follow our own personal truth, whatever that may be. Make the music you want to hear. Make the food you want to eat. Make the art you want to look at.
So yeah, here’s to making the pictures you want to see. Or at least trying to. This week’s (months?) photo set is another of Brett. (@goblingoddesss) There are not many that are safe for work so go take a look and sign up if you haven't. Really, you spend more on coffee in a couple days than you would here.