We’ve abandoned expressing innovations and ideas solely in the forms of stone, bronzes, and mosaics — SO WHAT!? Many of the best artists of today are finally minting money for themselves (rather than serving the whims of their overmasters in the Churches, in the halls of Government, or in the homes of the obscenely wealthy) by designing Mini Coopers, and characters in animated films, and iPhones and doorknobs and wonderful cosmetics… Who do they now create for? Everyman.

Today, because of the efforts of entrepreneurs and extremely talented artists, every man, woman, and child lives surrounded by more beauty and more wonderfulness than Cleopatra could ever have mustered in her day.

And what’s wrong with that?

I must be the one who is getting too old for humor.

Yet.

Miles Davis said, when asked why he had stopped playing “My Funny Valentine,”

“I love playing My Funny Valentine, but if I keep playing it, it will kill me.”

I have applied this lesson to my life.

Always look for art in new corners. It’s always there. Remember, Frank Sinatra and Sergio Mendes were the biggest sellers in the 60′s, not the Who, or the Rolling Stones.

La Dolce Vita played in art houses.

Pixar movies are good, but they are made for wide release.

I believe there are still great movies being made with great frequency. And, there are many new mediums by which artists are expressing themselves.

Roger, you are too good to grumble. Get with it.

Um… there are some martial arts movies, and a cheesy vampire flick that does that. That what you’re thinkin’ of?

Oh: And that scene out of “Last of the Mohicans”, where Wes Studi’s character Magua holds Monroe’s heart over his head.

Hehe… just gimme time, I’ll come up with all sorts of examples… :-}

Don’t miss Simon Schama’s Caravaggio tonight.

Ok Tivo it, download it, whatever.

First off: Yes, technology in general has sort of diminished the importance of aesthetic values. Now, most folks are more worried about how to program a TiVo, or even just the fact that they have one, than they are in the content they actually record on it. And yes, the iPhone embodies the idea that it’s not the movie any longer, it’s that you’re able to watch it on something that fits in your pocket. And that undoes decades of emphasis on certain technical aspects of the craft, such as cinematography, which is an essential part of the large, wide movie screen viewing experience but nearly irrelevant on the miniature PDA screen. The fascination has centered on the technology used to deliver the message, which goes right to McLuhan’s statement.

But…

This fascination with the technology is only part of the cycle. Once people become bored of the fact they can watch movies on their iPhone, they’ll start demanding real content. Folks quickly become enamored of new technology, but they are equally fast at reaching a comfort level with it, and even faster at viewing it as that old, boring way of doing things. Just how fascinating is a Walkman, nowadays? We’re seeing the demand for quality content in “new” technologies in the remastering of old movies to DVD in distributions like the Criterion Collection, and we’re also seeing the demand for aesthetic qualities be restored or elevated for movies and music in the manufacture of Blu-Ray, HD-DVD, SACD and DVD-A. We’re bored with the standard CD listening and DVD watching experience. Users want more, and while the market isn’t quite there yet for such products, it’s growing.

Look at another example, totally unrelated to the cinematic or musical arts: Auto racing, specifically Formula One. Its biggest claim to fame were the technology advancements – traction control, active suspension, etc. – and those are going by the wayside. Active suspension was eliminated back in ’94, and traction control is going away in the next year or two. Why? A return to letting the driver drive is the most quoted reason. In other words, there’s no more fascination, and an apparent level of boredom with the technology, and now people want a return to the racing aesthetic: The driver’s skill.

Yes, there’s a fascination with technology in the deliverance of content, but that fascination is cyclical. Once a given advancement becomes commonplace, the demand for real content instead of placeholder fluff will reassert itself.