Lacking grace Wednesday October 5, 2005, 5 comments

I’ve finally put my finger on it, and distilled it down into a nice simple statement:

Virtually every product of humanity conceived of in the last 100 years lacks grace.

Television has all the grace of a cudgel to the back of the head, and radio before it, was as subtle as a sledgehammer. Marketing today, whether online, on television, billboards (have you see these lately? Talk about overload) anywhere. No grace. No elegance.

Powerboats, fast cars, pickup trucks, hybrid cars, just in time shipping, broadband internet connections, web design. All of these things are a result of maximum mental firepower: in effect, hitting the problem with a thick stick till it stops moving.

I’m tired of it. You’re tired of it. It’s killing us, smothering us in maximum profit curves.

It’s time for some elegance.


Comments

Thomas Wednesday October 5, 2005


What ever had grace or elegance? ... whether now or 100 years prior? .. I don’t know if I could ever say anything that man has invented has had any elegance or grace. Things may be practical, useful, and have a “contemporary” and “futuristic” look (which then becomes outdated and comes back as retro or antiquish) ... Man, in my opinion, in using only 10% of his brain, can rarely, if ever, be considered as capable of creating something that is elegant and full of grace in comparison to what you see in nature. We can be inspired by nature, but never create it ourselves … We can only fainlty capture the fragrance of a flower, the beauty of a sunset, the usefulness of plants and herbs, the wonderful depths of the ocean, or a myriad of other items which predates any of our “brilliant” ideas … As a wise man who was going mad, but in a moment of clarity, once said, “Vanity of vanities; all is vanity … There is nothing new under the sun.” However, we’re just too stupid and end up giving ourselved WAY too much credit for our “creations” and inventions.

Here’s a question … is there anything we don’t destroy in order to make our beautiful creations, even when we recycle?

dang it, Adrian .. now you’ve got me going all philisophical again… stop it!!

Adrian Thursday October 6, 2005


You raise some food for thought Thomas. I shall consider!

Thomas Thursday October 6, 2005


Well, you started it ;-) ... I’m still pondering this entry

Thomas Thursday October 6, 2005


Actually … after submitting that last entry, I just had a thought … What’s often lacking is grace and elegance within ourselves … I believe we might become fed up with what we’ve create because of what’s lacking within us.

Graceful … Full of Grace … how often do we really see this as an every day occurrence among the majority of people? If we do see this, it’s rare and often manifests itself on extreme occasions. But when someone does exhibit this quality, it’s beautiful and we desire more of it. When it is gone, our world becomes a dark, dreary, place lacking the vibrant color … If we exhibit the quality of gracefulness, we become a sweet odor (like the flower), a rare piece of art (like the setting sun), and create a depth of character not normally explored (like the mysteries of the sea) – we become a living piece of art we enjoy viewing … Elegant – of high grade quality.

Let’s take the focus off the material objects and place beauty where is should belong … within us!

Jorge Friday October 14, 2005


A katana has both.

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