The Postmodern Generation- An Introduction

Blast from the past—beyond the Postmodern Identity

In the old world of religion and kings and queens, identity was solely based on one’s allegiance to a church, motherland, and ancestor; It was as simple as English, Scottish, Christian, and Catholic. When one reign falls and another rises, Identity grew fearful and at times was concealed.

Now, fast forward hundreds of years later into the 20^th and 21^st century and just as multiple seeds are plant in one soil, multiple ethnicities emerged on one land. The barriers of black and white were shattered and gray emerged. Identification was no longer just a card that carries “the holder’s family name, given name, date and place of birth and… a whole array of details, (Maalouf, 10)” it had become a recipe that gave individuals richness and made a human being or even an object irreplaceable. A carpet was no longer just a piece of furniture; it’s a piece of décor within a home , a souvenir from a corner of the world, and a place of prayer within a temple —it’s identity was made up with the views of multiple ethnicities and uses.

The idea of identity as rich, layered and colorful is also seen in the postmodern art world. Cubist painters wanted to emphasize the two-dimensionality of a painting. Artists during this time such as Picasso and Braque emphasizes the use of people and objects rather than landscape in their artwork.

This blog analyzes the main ideas of the postmodern world and how "relativity" was depicted in the works of famous painters of writers such as Violin and Grapes by Picasso, In the Name of Identity by Maalouf and the Different Points of Views campaign by HSBC.

Violin and Grapes by Pablo Picasso

In an attempt to break free from the boundaries of realism and use nature as the main subject in art, Picasso, along with other famous painters, founded a movement in art known as Cubism. “Picasso desired to construct and image rather than represent it”(Haddad). Just as Maalouf believed that a person’s true identity is composed of many qualities, characteristics and elements that all contribute to the whole person, cubist painters understood that in order to truly capture the essence of an object, one must acknowledge all of its possible points of views.

In observing the painting, Violin and Grapes, one notices the variation of colors, textures and the summation of all the layers each with a distinct characteristic—the bow, the scroll, the strings, and F-Hole—which all contribute to the overall idea of a violin. Maalouf described that one cannot be simply half Lebanese and half French because he wouldn’t “exist more authentically if [he] cut off a part of [him]self “(Maalouf, 1). When applying Maalouf’s logic to Picasso’s painting, one understands that when only focusing on the belly of the violin, it is indiscernible what the central theme or what object is being portrayed.

In this postmodernist society, everything is in the eyes of the beholder; therefore, not only must one acknowledge all of the characteristics of a person and all of the facets of an object in order to “identify” it, one must also understand the object on a universal scale.

"Pablo Picasso - The Birth of Cubism." Suite101.com. Web. 10 May 2012. http://theodore-haddad.suite101.com/pablo-picasso--cubism-a277060.

 

Maalouf, Amin. "My Identity, My Allegiance." In the Name of Identity: Violence and the Need to Belong. New York: Arcade, 2001. Print.

In the Name of Identity by Amin Maalouf

In Amin Maalouf’s In the Name of Identity, the author portrays the idea that identity is a conglomeration of various ingredients; It should not be divided into halves or thirds or “compartmentalized” simply because of race and allegiances. Maalouf reflects on the idea that in this postmodern world, the idea of “identity” has become a dangerous one: “[The question of identity] presupposes that ‘deep down inside’ everyone there is just one affiliation that really matters, a kind of ‘fundamental truth’ about each individual. (Maalouf, 2)” The author criticizes the idea that when one gives into just one side of his overall identity, it is almost as if the rest of one’s life—journeys, beliefs, tastes, sensibilities, and affinities, and “his life itself”—counted for nothing (Maalouf 2). However, when looking deeper into defining ones identity, factors such as conflicts, hierarchy, and that of his enemy all "change with time, and in so doing brings about fundamental changes in behavior" (Maalouf, 13).

Similar to Picasso’s technique in Violin and Grapes, Maalouf recognizes that his identity is not made up an “essential allegiance”. Identity is like a game of jigsaw puzzles. Maalouf writes,”I scour my memory to find as many ingredients of my identity as I can. I then assemble and arrange them. I don’t deny any of them” (Maalouf, 16). In Violin and Grapes, the different layers and body parts of the violin is scattered about the canvas like an unsolved puzzle.

Maalouf, Amin. "My Identity, My Allegiance." In the Name of Identity: Violence and the Need to Belong. New York: Arcade, 2001. Print.

HSBC Campaign

HSBC or “The world’s local bank” was one of the largest financial services and banking organizations in the world during the 20^th and 21^st century. With over 7500 offices in 87 countries, this international powerhouse took their influence to a global level. One of their most notable campaigns “Different Points of Value” outlined the company’s mission to celebrate all cultures, respect all points of views and that “every individual has their own priorities and values”(The Financial Brand).

The advertisements of this campaign include three panels of the same object, say a car, and underneath each photo read a different caption—in this case, freedom, status symbol, and polluter. The campaign highlights the idea that while one might view a car as a symbol of progress and industry, another might have just simply viewed it has a mode of transportation.

Drawing the campaign into the context of Picasso’s Violin and Grapes and Maalouf’s book, all three artifacts underline the essence of postmodernism: the accumulation of global perspectives and angles. In essence, postmodernism allows for the big jigsaw puzzle of life to be unsolved. Postmodernism moved away from art’s realism and man’s enlightenment and overall, striving towards perfection. Instead, postmodernism made room for the grays to seep in and more importantly helped create a universal melting pot of our world.

"HSBC ‘Different Points of Value’." HSBC ‘Different Points of Value’. Web. 10 May 2012. <http://thefinancialbrand.com/6361/hsbc-brand/>.

The Shift

So then we all ask: How did we, the apathetic generation, get from there to here?

In the Classical Period of Greece, the great thinkers, Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates, all sought to question, to answer, and to reach higher levels of the mind. However, as time progressed, humans learned that perfection is not as easily achieved as the sculpture of David or the Golden Ratio of the Parthenon. Humans learned that the world is cruel, war is bound to happen, industrialization is ugly, nuclear weapons destroy cities, and that most importantly the majority just don’t care.

During the postmodern era, the ugly truths of war and morality were revealed as people drifted away from a universal jurisdiction and boundary of responsibilities. Relativity was on the tips of everyone’s tongues. The moral code was “you do your thing and I’ll do mine” and the period was “proudly distinguished by the absence of ‘rigid’ opinions and moral values”(Kimball). Even one’s identity was a matter of relativity. You were no longer just a male or female—you embraced both gender and sexuality. You were no longer Irish or Polish—you recognized your blood, surroundings, and allegiance. Every aspect of “you” had “a possible place in the sun or in the shade” (Maalouf, 15).

It's the Dictatorship of Relativism (Kimball).

As Einstein’s theory of relativity emerged, people questioned their social spheres and as the postmodern generation sank further into the dangerous sphere of existentialism vs. nihilism, a general aura of apathy emerged as the moral code transgressed to  “since there is no right answer, and no universal theme, why look for it? Who cares?”

This is the generation of those who slaved across the finish line in the race to nowhere. This is the generation of those useless high SAT scores and polished resumes.