This year has been particularly complicated. We are living in uncertain times. Everything is moving at a cataclysmic speed. The unthinkable happened: Donald Trump is US president and Britain is leaving the EU. North Korea launched nuclear weapons over Japan, the migrant crisis continues, people live without the most basic needs such as food and shelter and terror attacks are increasing in frequency – leading to fear, isolationism and populism. If you created a time line of events throughout the world, you could see the cause and effect of everything. How did all this happen? Where do we go from here?
We must look at the unprecedented rate of change and to our cyber world for answers. This level of intervention has not been seen on this scale since the Industrial Revolution. We haven’t even had time to properly digest how it is affecting our lives. We’re just scratching at the surface in getting a wider philosophical meaning of what this new upheaval means for our times. How is this affecting our humanity? What does this do to personal autonomy, self-worth and identity? What about creativity and idea generation?
The December / January issue of Aesthetica is about ideas. The notion that progress is continuous, and that we can change things if we want to, is a powerful statement. We take a look at Stephen Shore’s retrospective at MoMA, which not only charts the photographer’s take on the everyday, but how he has always been an innovator. Architecture defines our built world; a new book, Destination Architecture, surveys how buildings play a part in global economies. Meanwhile, Digital Handmade: Craftsmanship and the New Industrial Revolution discusses how technology is making it easier to create.
In photography, Cig Harvey and Kevin Cooley return with work that expands upon their practices. Tekla Evelina Severin, Clarissa Bonet, Jeanette Hägglund and Tania Franco Klein explore new possibilities, from blurring genres to redefining narratives. Finally, the last words goes to Nathan Coley.
Find out more about the December / January issue HERE.
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Credits:
1. Photographer: Dean Bradshaw, Production: Jess Herman. Styling & Model: Ann-Marie Hoang (Instagram: @mstr_of_disguise).