Urban Media Lab

I got some more pictures for you and another story with it.

As you can see in the picture above, ancient culture was very rich in detail and very graphic in doing so. Today we have science laws and see mythical ideas as stories or make-believe. They seem to be the very opposite of each other, and they are. But we have to dig deep and see make-believe as what it is: to make someone believe something. In that, they are more than just fantasy - they are the very foundation of culture. So if you take the steps from fantasy to believe to culture, you end up with something that not only becomes a law, but also becomes power and thus real.

Of course it still is metaphorical, but if someone would ask me if i had a third eye (a eye between our two eyes, sitting a little higher than the others and enable one to see beyond the surface) i had to yes. Why? Because any person who is a researcher, a creative person or into business needs to be able to see beyond the surface of things. To do so is the very basis of knowledge. You need to be able to see the systems, dynamics, structures and relations at work to understand them and even go beyond them.

So we are now very far away from a nice bedtime story and right inside of the vast structures and powers behind our cultural everyday life. Seeing and analyzing them is essential for artists, researchers, businessmen and even politicians. Right now you see where i´m getting at. Scientific laws are very interesting, but they evolve around processes in nature. They work with or with out humans. You can build a car with these laws, but you can´t run a society with them. Cultural ideas on the other had evolve around people and their believes. They are much more powerful. They have much more meaning to us.

So what is it we can learn from these ancient cultures? Although we tend to have very abstract and slick designs, trying to get the surface as shiny and flat as possible, there is no doubt that our cultural life is as rich and detailed as ever. Looking at the sculptures of ancient art we are able to see a lot of the dynamics at work, that make our everyday life rich and meaningful. So no matter if you are selling Hot-dogs at a street corner or think you are the big new star on campus - learning and even more respecting the rich knowledge of these sculptures and the long lost cultures behind them is a crucial thing to do.

I´m sure you are thinking right now "Ok, i was told so in school. They look very fancy and stuff, but what´s the benefit form me?"

The benefit for you is to understand power. Because if there is one thing these sculptures where made for it´s power. It sounds a little dull until you understand power as the energy of culture. There is power of ruling, but also power of seduction and even power of surrender. If you think Sun Tzu was a good read, you will very much enjoy your next visit to the ancient museum and learn from the best. Pick one sculpture and try to understand every detail of its crafting - it will be the best insight you ever got.

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