When civilization finally crumbles, the videos of funny quips and the overabundance of podcasts will have been forgotten as if they never existed. The digital monuments that are worshipped today are fleeting blips on a self-destructing radar, none taking the responsibility of recording now as it will be seen then. What stands as a symbol for history of man’s spirit is the art that is made with the intention of doing so. This is what is important.
Today there are no paintings from Ancient Rome. Books have suffered through several changes of ideology and lost millions to mass burnings. The few glimpses we have are slices of time, treasured for the spirit of the human state densely packed in each piece.
I suppose the lack of interest the general population has in creating a historic time may stem from a psychological fear that nothing in this time is worth recording. Nihilism’s finest hour may be upon us. Oh, Kant, I hear you moaning from the grave.
April 2, 2014