Cultural Cartography

Art or truth

One of the interesting things about living in our times is that all the boundaries are blurred. We no longer know if something is advertising, art or genuine. Sometimes I know people find that annoying. But to be truthful, I don't really care. If something catches my fancy, then it catches my fancy. 

Like this letter stuck to a heating pipe in an old factory turned into artists studios in Berlin. It seems to be half ripped off and the first line appears to say "My gallery owner threw this out with me..." but as it is half ripped off, who knows. I know that I like making up the story that goes along with these words, somewhat like the people at Found. 

This rings so true

Things marketing people love - or maybe this should say "Things people who work in marketing departments love" 

http://thingsmarketingpeoplelove.blogspot.com/

Plus giving their brand a youth target audience! They think that means they will be speaking to people like this: 

But actually the reality is more like this: 

Photo courtesy of bellagabs

Beware of Greeks

I have just finished re-reading the Odyssey (Greetings and thanks at this point to members of my lovely Book Club) and it struck me again how much of our cultural history is being lost. I had a moment like this a while ago in New York when I realised that nobody on the street around me probably understood the significance of the carvings on the New York Public Library - why were all these people in swirling clothing standing up there and what are they supposed to stand for? The Odyssey is full of these moments where you realise that you just don't quite understand what things are supposed to mean. For example we had a long conversation about hospitality in Ancient Greece: Did you have to take everyone in who turned up at your door? At what point were you allowed to turn them out? But none of us really knew. 

One thing that did become clear though is that the Odyssey is a cracking story. Blood, gore, love, sex and a happy end. What more could you want?