Stuck in stone, as stuck on our phones
Yesterday, I visited the Modern Contemporary Museum in Amsterdam, in the Netherlands, to see Banksy. What a surprise of all the other arts we encountered! You can find all the current exhibitions on the Moco website.
One of the pieces of art that caught my attention was the New Race, 2019, by the Italian contemporary artist Federico Clapis. It made me reflect on the usage of our phones, the sought for instant dopamine and the creation of time that once was the goal of developing advanced technology, and now is leaving us with less time to spend outside of the digital space.
In our relentless pursuit of leisure (accompanied by distraction), we often find ourselves lost in a digital labyrinth, unsure of our destination or purpose. Time, once considered a precious resource, has become an illusion as we find ourselves immersed in these screens.
The irony lies in our initial intention: we invented these devices to provide us with more time, but time seems to be slipping through our fingers as we waste hundreds of hours just staring at screens. Once, we wanted to have more time, be more productive, optimize our lives, and live in the “real world”. Now, we have more time to be spent staring at screens and consuming, consuming, consuming. Will it ever stop? Are we really living the best life we can?
Traveling has been one activity that has helped me to be more aware of the present. Also, reading and writing (yes, the basics never get old). Traveling in particular, because it is exhausting being physically in front of the beautiful Rijksmuseum, opening my phone and being connected with someone’s stories on their trip to The Maldives or NYC. If I am here, in Amsterdam, I am not there, in the US. It sounds simple and obvious, but if you think about it, it is not.
And that is exactly what we have been doing when we open our phones to check social media and notifications. We are not being present.
You might argue that using social media is necessary for your business and to connect with friends. I know, and I get it. I live far away from my family and my friends, and I deal with this dilemma all the time…
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