The power art has over society cannot be denied- it shows up in countless forms and acts as a steady influence in everyday life. McLuhan discusses art as “an early alarm system” and goes to suggest that art can now “anticipate future social and technological developments”. The current technological boom has complicated our interpretation of information because of its simplicity. Information is available at our fingertips, and to agree with Courtney’s earlier post, “The effects of technology do not occur at the level of opinions or concepts, but alter sense ratios or patterns of perception steadily and without any resistance,” (18). Technology has changed the way we see the world and it takes a pulled-back perspective to, “…get our bearings in our own culture,” (19). This is the role of the artist, to take in all the different perspectives and cultures and viewpoints in society and provide a dynamic message to the public, one that may take studying to discover. Uncovering the layers of both medium and message may reveal startling truths about what lies ahead.
To further support this point, the embedded media picture from class contains multiple layers of contrasting mediums and perspectives, from the mismatched dates to the picture within a picture within a picture. The dynamic and information-rich slide mirrors society quite well, for one never knows how many different layers an issue, system, or culture contains. It remains the artists job to sort through the embedded messages and become a source of knowledge in the systems and cultures of society. Art can be transformed from a medium of self-expression to a medium of awareness, therefore sending a new message of the times that may come.
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