I think the technology incorporated in The Second Buddha helps convey the ideas portrayed in the art in a way that is easy to digest in modern times. Technology is omnipresent, and has become such a vital part of our culture, and understanding of the world. I think technology is woven into the exhibit so well because it is subtle, and viewers can choose whether they want to interact with it or not. When you do interact with the iPads, aspects are revealed that you wouldn’t necessarily catch otherwise. They highlight important details in the work and explain the importance of them, in a way that allows viewers to act as treasure revealers discovering the hidden teachings. The one that especially jumped out at me was the portrait of Terdag Lingpa, because the tablet revealed a hidden poem on the back of the portrait, that Lingpa’s students didn’t discover themselves for many years. In this way, the portraits act as vessels to transport the teachings into the future, and show how the teachings of Padmasambhava can be revealed, then concealed again to keep passing them along into the future. I think that because technology is such a huge part of the present world, this is a great instrument to reveal the teachings because it puts them in a modern context, and shows us that even though these ideas are so old, they are still present and ready to be uncovered, just in different ways. We can connect with something that is centuries old in a way that is familiar and comfortable to us. The video installation really shows how the Western concept of time as a linear path that is unaffected by humans causes anxiety and fear of the future. We are so caught up in what the future will bring, and we spend so much time planning, and acting in a way that we think will positively affect the future. The teachings of Padmasambhava go against this idea of time as a stubborn, unchanging force in our lives. Padmasambhava could foresee hard periods of time that had yet to occur, and passed along lessons that could be uncovered by disciples when they were needed most. Enlightened people can see time as both the moment they’re in, and a moment that is linked into a whole dimension of time, which eases anxiety because they can engage in the moment instead of just experiencing the moment.
In Lost Future, the artists use things from the past and the present to help create a really interesting image of the future. Matti Braun’s work combines different materials and processes to covey the interaction of different cultures throughout history. I found the Atol collection really interesting because I’m familiar with Batik fabric and have worked with it before, and knew it was a traditional Asian technique. When you think of fabric, you think about movement and a soft texture, and Batik fabric is all about capturing vibrant colors. Seeing it transformed into static, monochromatic piece really helps tie it together with Western culture. Color is so important in Eastern art, so taking something that is traditionally Eastern and taking away its color helps adapt this art to something that fits the norms and styles of Western art. I didn’t realize Batik fabric was such an important part of trade, but I easily recognized the Batik style, and I like how Braun conveyed the idea of how cultural traditions spread and adapt based on their surroundings. This idea was even more prominent when I saw R.T./S.R./V.S. It’s odd yet beautiful how the tree discs are in a place where they don’t belong, yet seem to fit in so perfectly. It’s really interesting, because my best friend, who is Bengali and Indian, was just telling me about the movie Koi… Mil Gaya this weekend, Bollywood’s first Sci-fi movie, which is said to have been inspired by The Alien. When I researched the films and realized that they were connected, it was especially cool to witness how ideas can be transported across time and space through human communication and connection. The photographs by the Otolith Group show the relationship between past and present more literally, which was really pleasant to look at. The superimposed images seemed to fit in so perfectly with the photographs, and to me show how although things can change so much over time, they can also stay very consistent. This goes back to the anxiety-inducing quality of linear time; the photos show stretches of time in a way that’s comforting and nostalgic, rather than panicky. Overall I think that the future can be really scary and overwhelming, and the pieces in the exhibit successfully analyze the future in relation to the past, and take the fear out of it. In a way they seem to celebrate the past because it has gotten us to the present and will carry us into the future.
When I was looking at Monument to the Anxious and Hopeful, certain ones definitely stuck out to me. Some were funny, some were so positive it was almost annoying, and some really did fill me with hope. Some were personal triumphs, like falling in love or welcoming a new baby, that you couldn’t help but feel happy about, even though you didn’t know the people who wrote them. Others were simple and to the point, like “because I have no other choice”, or “because I’m alive”, which are so simple, but true. It was interesting to see really optimistic voices, and really realistic voices that still held hope. I think that being optimistic is good, but we also need to be realistic. I liked the anxious side because it was comforting to see people worry about the same things I worry about. I saw tons about the environment, and about the carelessness of the people we have elected to be in charge. In a way, the anxious side made me more hopeful because it was honest about what’s happening in the world, and what’s happening in our individual worlds, and I felt a sense of solidarity. The hopeful side shared small things that made me happy and reminded me how nice it felt to see other people happy, but some that were overly optimistic or expressed how great life was, when life isn’t great for a lot of people and animals on Earth, just came across as naïve to me. Life is great when you aren’t paying attention to the awful things happening all around us. Maybe I’m just a pessimist, but I think that being hopeful isn’t about just being optimistic all the time, but instead being hopeful even when there is no hope. When looking at the anxious side, I felt a sense of acknowledging the horrible things in life, and trying to cope with and change them. I think you need to read both sides to really feel them both.
