Which do you agree with most?
-
Which do you agree with most?
A. The concept of "Futuristic" is dying.
From the 1890s to the present the concept of a futuristic aesthetic has lost meaning, inverted in on itself and is nearing irrelevance in the past two decades.B. There is some truth to A, but this is also just a change in perspective that's a function of aging. A "futuristic aesthetic" still may make sense for young people.
C. There will always be a "futuristic aesthetic" what do you mean it's "dying?"
D. Other
The concept of futuristic dissolves in the kinds of futures which overturn, subvert, and otherwise transcend the here of the here and now of the now.
The phase transition which Douglas Engelbart suggests, and that which Heinz Otto-Peitgen's article in Der Spiegel and Lizb's articles about computers as dynamical systems never really ramified in user-interfaces (to operating systems in particular).
Compare, in particular:
Adam Ant's character in the episode /Such Interesting Neighbors/ of /Amazing Stories/,and most of the folks in this interview
in terms of /disintermediation of interfaces/.
we do not live in a world where knowing how energy and information sloshing around in computers is a stepping stone to understanding other systems, and where access to such is democratized.
-
Which do you agree with most?
A. The concept of "Futuristic" is dying.
From the 1890s to the present the concept of a futuristic aesthetic has lost meaning, inverted in on itself and is nearing irrelevance in the past two decades.B. There is some truth to A, but this is also just a change in perspective that's a function of aging. A "futuristic aesthetic" still may make sense for young people.
C. There will always be a "futuristic aesthetic" what do you mean it's "dying?"
D. Other
I can spot one current "future setting" theme: tech disappears - digital contact lenses or implants or *sometimes* glasses are the screens, possibly with digital tattoos for a UI.
I've seen a lot "its the future" stuff with brownstone buildings, hardwood floors, classic timeless decor - but with infinite computing power tucked away everywhere.
But all the tech is generic, invisible, inter-operable, and just "there" without having to *be* there as boxes with wires and visible form
-
@futurebird thinking about this more, it occurs to me that most past societies probably didn't have any concept of a "futuristic" aesthetic, either positive or negative?
I would think the average historical person would guess the future would look a little different in style from their present, but not in ways they could pinpoint, which is kind of the place I am at now.
@floatybirb @futurebird Mmm there is some evidence of cultures around the globe and across time describing fantastical visions of future or alternate worlds.
-
Which do you agree with most?
A. The concept of "Futuristic" is dying.
From the 1890s to the present the concept of a futuristic aesthetic has lost meaning, inverted in on itself and is nearing irrelevance in the past two decades.B. There is some truth to A, but this is also just a change in perspective that's a function of aging. A "futuristic aesthetic" still may make sense for young people.
C. There will always be a "futuristic aesthetic" what do you mean it's "dying?"
D. Other
@futurebird I'd say one contributing factor to the feeling like there is no futurism anymore is this very specific shift in tech design that happened starting in the late 2000s and culminating by the 2010s;
There was this mostly unconscious drive to make tech intentionally seem less futuristic and instead fade into the background as the tech became more integrated in daily life. At first you got your computers and phones in very stand-out designs; even the most generic PCs were white and had some level of curves. But then, they started making computers black, made their UI more minimalist, things like making the thinnest phone and the least bezel you could have on a screen came into play. No longer is tech something of a novelty, it's here, and you're forced to deal with it.
Using the computer is no longer a fun novelty task, it's just what you inherently have to do to live in this world.
Of course, we still have some futurism in tech design, mainly in the world of gaming PCs; it's just a really genericized futurism that relies on flashy lights and sharp edges. Long gone are the days of chrome, brushed silver and curves -
Which do you agree with most?
A. The concept of "Futuristic" is dying.
From the 1890s to the present the concept of a futuristic aesthetic has lost meaning, inverted in on itself and is nearing irrelevance in the past two decades.B. There is some truth to A, but this is also just a change in perspective that's a function of aging. A "futuristic aesthetic" still may make sense for young people.
C. There will always be a "futuristic aesthetic" what do you mean it's "dying?"
D. Other
I asked my young person what she thought, and she says there is: "Space and robots, like EVE from Wall-E. But you know what I don't picture? Flying cars."
-
@futurebird I'd say one contributing factor to the feeling like there is no futurism anymore is this very specific shift in tech design that happened starting in the late 2000s and culminating by the 2010s;
There was this mostly unconscious drive to make tech intentionally seem less futuristic and instead fade into the background as the tech became more integrated in daily life. At first you got your computers and phones in very stand-out designs; even the most generic PCs were white and had some level of curves. But then, they started making computers black, made their UI more minimalist, things like making the thinnest phone and the least bezel you could have on a screen came into play. No longer is tech something of a novelty, it's here, and you're forced to deal with it.
Using the computer is no longer a fun novelty task, it's just what you inherently have to do to live in this world.
Of course, we still have some futurism in tech design, mainly in the world of gaming PCs; it's just a really genericized futurism that relies on flashy lights and sharp edges. Long gone are the days of chrome, brushed silver and curves@maidservantofnanaya @futurebird sad, but true. I miss sexy, glamorous machines (from cars to computers to kitchen appliances to telephones to turntables/stereos) It’s as if we’re stuck in a Vonnegutian technology loop where everything has to conform to the lowest common denominator with absolutely no individuality or identity.
-
@maidservantofnanaya @futurebird sad, but true. I miss sexy, glamorous machines (from cars to computers to kitchen appliances to telephones to turntables/stereos) It’s as if we’re stuck in a Vonnegutian technology loop where everything has to conform to the lowest common denominator with absolutely no individuality or identity.
@Jay @futurebird I try my best to live as close to the 2000s as I can lol. I modded my Windows 10 UI to look like Windows 98 and with my new computer, I might get Chicago95 Linux; I use an android phone that uses a keyboard like a blackberry and pretty much exclusively for messaging, email and calling lol. I intentionally got a white PC that reminds me of Y2K music videos lol.
I'm very much comfortable living in an outdated idea of what the future would be like, as it's better than the future we actually got lol -
If you think there is an active (optimistic projective) "futuristic aesthetic" that hits, I challenge you to show me the most "futuristic feeling" thing you can find.
@futurebird I’ve been trying hard lately to inject a futuristic aesthetic into the designs I do at work. We actually do a lot of really cool, cutting-edge stuff but our buildings have a sad 70s prison aesthetic, so I’m trying to counter that. I use a lot of video-game-inspired design elements: low poly textures, heads up displays (HUDs), everything glowy & transparent.
-
@futurebird the "futurist" books I read as a child were mostly green energy, and home computers, including videoconferencing. There was a comparison between a peaceful green future, clear skies, wind and hydrogen... and a fossil fuels future, smokestacks, air pollution, suffering. This would've been published in the late 70s. I think it's still extremely relevant.
@johnefrancis @futurebird Sweet futuristic coal-powered train, "giving off little or no pollution"!
-
If you think there is an active (optimistic projective) "futuristic aesthetic" that hits, I challenge you to show me the most "futuristic feeling" thing you can find.
@futurebird they haven’t yet been adapted to a visual medium, so I hope this counts, but the Culture books are the most compelling optimistic future I’ve seen. some of the imagery that stuck with me was people choosing bodies for themselves—on a whim or a trend or a philosophy—and volunteering their time to design mountain ranges for new worlds. just overall felt like _the_ success story we could aspire to.
-
@futurebird I’ve been trying hard lately to inject a futuristic aesthetic into the designs I do at work. We actually do a lot of really cool, cutting-edge stuff but our buildings have a sad 70s prison aesthetic, so I’m trying to counter that. I use a lot of video-game-inspired design elements: low poly textures, heads up displays (HUDs), everything glowy & transparent.
@futurebird Here you can see part of a mural I did (oddly cropped to remove my employer’s name).
-
@futurebird Here you can see part of a mural I did (oddly cropped to remove my employer’s name).
very cool!
-
If you think there is an active (optimistic projective) "futuristic aesthetic" that hits, I challenge you to show me the most "futuristic feeling" thing you can find.
@futurebird maybe it's too basic to say "star trek", but i'm gonna say star trek, bc they're still presenting a vision of the future where there's no racism, no sexism (in more recent iterations), no classism, no poverty; where everyone is cared for (probably in large part because there is no money); where the environment is preserved; where people no longer depend on superstition; where the appreciation of science is popular...
and something like a celebration of competence & coöperation...?
-
@johnefrancis @futurebird Sweet futuristic coal-powered train, "giving off little or no pollution"!
I vaguely recall seeing books from this series, or something very similar, as a kid. Just now I found this interview with the artist.
When the Future Was Full of Stars: An Interview with David Jefferis
Serious study of and public interest in space colonization peaked in the 1970s, fueled by the successes of the Apollo program and a youth culture that embraced the speculative sci-fi of Star Trek and 2001: A Space Odyssey. If the idea of hitching a ride on an asteroid outfitted with nuclear motors was utopian, it…
2 Warps to Neptune (2warpstoneptune.com)
-
Which do you agree with most?
A. The concept of "Futuristic" is dying.
From the 1890s to the present the concept of a futuristic aesthetic has lost meaning, inverted in on itself and is nearing irrelevance in the past two decades.B. There is some truth to A, but this is also just a change in perspective that's a function of aging. A "futuristic aesthetic" still may make sense for young people.
C. There will always be a "futuristic aesthetic" what do you mean it's "dying?"
D. Other
@futurebird Been thinking about this since you posted it. I answered B because I think part of what's going on is that the most ridiculous corporate or government propaganda gets read as sincere by kids. Adults were probably never buying it for the most part.
We think of 1950s Space Age science fiction as optimistic, but at the time, there was a LOT of post-apocalyptic stuff (why wouldn't there be?) and there were even SF fans writing essays worrying about how science fiction had lost its optimistic future--it was all stories about the Bomb now.
And of course I remember all of the dystopian disaster futures of the 1970s. I grew up on that--the population bomb, the energy crisis, anomie and mass violence, Future Shock, ice ages AND global warming. It was a golden age of that terrifying stuff before Star Wars hit.
