11/27/2006: "CULTURE CLASH"

Culture clash. What's up with that? It's almost as if we're wired for it ... especially in America. We may not have invented it, but we're certainly perpetuating it. Has America ever been more divided within itself? Have we ever been more isolated from the rest of the world? It all comes down to cultures ... and politics ... and power ... and money. Perhaps arrogance too. Americans shouldn't hate one another. Other countries shouldn't hate America, but we do and they do. It's a culture thing.

I LOVE my country. America rocks. Freedom of speech and expression rock. Democracy rocks. Free-market enterprise rocks (I guess). Yet, I also think that we can and should love other countries and cultures, too. I haven't traveled the world yet, but it's a great dream.

I want to walk through the Valley of the Kings and open my mind and arms and just let the regal, Egyptian winds carry me. I want to see the emerald greens of Ireland and chow down on Shepherd's Pie in a down home Irish pub. I want to see penguins march on an arctic landscape and watch exotic birds fly above the Brazilian rainforest. I want to be plucked from my own culture and see if I sink or swim in someone else's. I'm sure I'll swim. Most of all, I want to see the PEOPLE of the world. The Discovery Channel isn't good enough. You often hear people say, "My view of the world is THIS or my view of the world is THAT." Yet, many of these people don't even want to know their next-door neighbors. How can you have a view of the world, if you haven't seen the world for yourself? If people are basically the same everywhere you go, and we hate other people, then doesn't that mean we actually hate ourselves?

Show me cultures clashing and I'll show you ignorance in its prime. Everything is based on supposition and misinterpretation. It's much easier to assume that guy is an a--hole, rather than trying to understand him simply by asking him, "What's wrong?" All it takes is a little courage and exploration ... no traveling involved there! When cultures clash, it's a collision course to oblivion. It's the opposite of creative vision. Many people in our society think conflict is hip. They think it's cool for people to walk around with chips on their shoulders. They're ready for a fight at any moment. It's almost as if everyone leaves their homes in the morning in "attack mode." As I was leaving the post office this very morning, a woman behind me said to her male friend, "People who work for the government are so rude!" I looked back at them and gave her sort of a knowing laugh. I was just being friendly. Then, her male friend snarled at me and said, "Yeah, Democrats are rude, too!" I couldn't believe it. First off, the guy knew nothing about me, let alone my political persuasion, but clearly he felt it was necessary to spread the rudeness. Have you noticed? Everyone seems so angry and edgy. These days, you can get a bullet by simply looking at someone. And if they're from another culture, watch out! It's on! This is when we feel the need to prove that we're "better" than someone else. I don't understand you and because I don't understand, I feel inferior, therefore, I must attack and dominate you. Then, I'll feel "better." It's a culture thing. Sad.

Funny, because at the end of the day, all we really have is culture. We are culture. We can destroy it or grow it. We can clash or collaborate. And nothing on the planet nurtures culture better than art. When it comes to art, culture is down with the people. It becomes about collaboration. When we walk through an art museum or gallery, we're literally bathing in culture. It's baptism by Botero. I can swim in ancient Oceania, hunt with the Incas, dine with the Impressionists and recline with the female nudes. I can travel the world in mere hours, without being battered by the elements outdoors. When it comes to art, culture collaborates. It should. I think that's why I love mixed-media art so much. It's about taking disparate, seemingly irreconcilable items that clash on the surface, but ultimately form a symphony of materiality, with collaboration being the secret ingredient that gives it that spicy, salsa zing! You step back, look and say, "Well, I'll be damned!" It works, just as God intended. It's about creative vision, on canvas, in clay and amid the universe. Cultural arrogance can keep us from seeing this clearly. Culture is about singing, dancing, eating and visually delighting us ... and when different cultures come together? That should be a social, intellectual, emotional and even spiritual orgasm. Life at its most intense ... and meaningful. A big bang. Perhaps even better than sex. There may be some clashing involved, but ultimately, it's about collaboration. It's what we're all here on earth todo. We can help the universe and all that exists beyond our comprehension ... thrive through collaboration. We can start by painting a new picture. A new world. Knock on your neighbor's door and say, "Hello." Ask your Arab or Irish or Asian or African-American or Hispanic acquaintance, "What's wrong?" It's a culture thing. The big bang begins. We don't have to agree, but we can understand. No clashing necessary. Let's try it. It's not that difficult. If we're not careful, we could end up with the best masterpiece of all. A better world. But then, we're too pissed-off to worry about that.

MICHAEL CORBIN IS AN AVID ART COLLECTOR AND AUTHOR OF "ART IN KING SIZE
BEDS: A COLLECTOR'S JOURNAL," AVAILABLE ON AUTHORHOUSE.COM.

Replies: 14 Comments

on Wednesday, December 20th, shailendra tiwari said

Happy christmas , Michel

I enjyoed your blog, As an artist from india and an engineer i am visualising that both india and America shall now work as sculpture of world peace . We have to find our roals at take our position in this part of our TIME.PL see my web page and remain in touch
Best Wishes
shailendra
Artist
BHOPAL

on Wednesday, November 29th, jose said

Mark, you state two important things there. It is not only necessary to know, one has to Do what one has come to know. Regarding that last paragraph I would ask if we don’t all experience the act of creativity – feel the joy it fills us with and the energy that it can bring? In all lines of work, not just the arts, men and women contribute with their input towards something that in some measure will benefit another. The arts may produce fine impressions but the factory worker equally puts in his contribution towards the making of something someone will experience as essential. But whereas the artist is still led to believe he is someone special all the others are made to feel mundane, grey, secondary, and thus fail to acknowledge their contribution towards life as we experience it.

It is a question of appraisal and while the artist can still aspire to be valued, the factory worker has greater difficulty in making his bosses understand he is an essential part of their success – he ceases to see himself as part of a creative process and the joy and energy are drained from him. But this is all part of the madness of humanity, not only in the US and Europe but in Africa, amongst Africans themselves [before and after colonialism], in Asia, all over the place.

If I decide to act upon what I know, valuing you as I would expect you to value me, a special space grows between us where we can share ideas openly, feel the joy of our encounter and move away feeling energised. Those are creative moments accessible to all, you’ll go your way, I’ll go mine but we’ll move on with a boost. But then, for a great many, myself included, something happens along the way and we go back to sleep. How long can the imprint last? Blast! There seems to be no way around this.

on Tuesday, November 28th, mark said

Jose, I do agree with you. Often what we fear or dislike in others is that which is deep within ourselves, we just don't always know it, some times we do know but are unwilling to admit to it. One must look deep into ones self to help understand others. We must look into ourselves to be able to look beyond ourselves and to see into others.

Can the arts do this? I don't know, but it is worth the try. The trouble with the arts is unless you make your statement very clear there will be many interpretations. One's over all culture is like that as well. An outsider might interperate anothers cultural beliefs far different (though without malice) then those within the culture. This is very true when it comes to the "White man" and the American Indian. The Europeans had no understanding of the natives, nor did the natives understand the Europeans, which had and still does create conflict between the two cultures. Perhaps if each looked deep within and then beyond this might not be the case. The hard part is not to get people to understand this as I think most do, but to get them to practice it.

Perhaps it is not the finished product of art (which often defines culture) but rather the act of creating art that can bring cultures together in a more positive light and understanding. As one creates art one can understand the "why" of art, something that eludes most people who do not pursue any creative endevor. We all have two sides, a dark side and a light side. Art, the act of creating, may not destroy the dark side (and that is a good thing) but it can help an individual realise their dark side and learn to deal with it.

on Tuesday, November 28th, Andrew said

Jose, that's a critical point you bring up. Understanding ourselves as single individuals. To see if someone is psychotic, many analysts pose three questions about person, place, and time. Who are you, where are we right now, and what is the date? To a lesser degree than those who answer wrong, we're all sick. We tend to ignore parts of the answers, of our own choice of course, to each of these questions. We want to believe we are something, that perhaps we are not, or at least not completely. That includes being artists. It also includes what we as a society are, and what we believe societies different from us to be. So there's the collective 'we', and the individual 'we'. Certainly, you're right to say that to understand ourselves as Americans or anything else, we have to start by understanding ourselves as individuals. Who we are relative to others. Where we are in relation to the rest of the world. And what year it is.

on Tuesday, November 28th, josé said

I agree with you in principle, Mark, very much so, but [and I know I sometimes insist too much on this] before we can go beyond what we perceive as an understanding and acceptance of our friends, and move towards embracing those we consider less likeable we have to first truly begin to understand what makes us tick, which is something very few - and especially not those belonging to the masses - are willing to undertake. Reversing your statement I would say that the more the individual learns and knows about himself fully he will accept the varied manifestations of others as being equally valid and worthy of respect. This would be an understanding and acceptance that would come from deep within and not solely dependent on superficial and transient likes and dislikes. Would you not agree?

Now, the question: Can the artist [poet, musician…] achieve this through the impressions he conveys? Can he set the viewer [inwardly] in a certain direction – be it only one or two? And is it what he is meant to do? This would be an interesting topic for a blog.

on Tuesday, November 28th, mark said

One more point. I mentioned "understanding our enemies". Perhaps if we understood them better they would not be our enemies.

on Tuesday, November 28th, mark said

Fear, lack of knowledge, lack of understanding. As a country we have trouble putting ourselves in other's shoes. I once worked with a very nice, kind and loving woman who was afraid of "black" people. I asked her why and she said because she never knew a "black" person. Her ignorance bred fear.

As a country we also feel that our way is the right way and every one else should do as we do. Well, we have a pretty good system here but it is far from perfect, and, it is not the only way. Nor do we listen, as long as we have been on this continent we have never listened to the natives of this land, and they are here! Since we do not listen to them we do not understand them.

If you lack understanding you have fear, and with fear comes suspicion and hatered. One should always want to understand our friends, but it is even wiser to understand our enemies, of which we do not.

A good way to understand those around us (even those standing in line with us) and those in other countries is to understand their culture, art, music, polotics, religion and so on. That does not mean we need to become them but to understand them. The better we understand a culture the better we can understand an individual.

I try to keep an opened mind, I don't always do it, but I try, I try to wear an other's shoes. If I can do it I am better for it and smarter for it and more understanding because of it.

on Tuesday, November 28th, josé said

I enjoyed this blog.

The allegory of the Tower of Babel has all the ingredients you write about, Michael. In some ways it may seem to some that humanity has come a long way but Man has not changed one iota within himself since way back then in areas that are crucial and necessary to bring about a fundamental change for the better. Too many forces are at play and it is easier to carry on in slumber, engaging with the outward world, shaping it, taking it to unimaginable heights, believing in our greatness while refusing to confront the real work that needs to be done on the ‘inside’. The result? Man has become a beast with increasingly dangerous toys in his hands and the inability to realise how impotent he is to handle them.

In the reality in which we live, the negative emotions of which you speak exist and will, no doubt, continue to be promoted. Each ‘tribe’ develops and refines its particular brand in order to protect the values it holds dear and as being exclusively its own. There is no difference in this between my country and yours, between India and Pakistan, between Israel and its Arab neighbours. The only difference is that some still manage to find a basis to talk over their differences and others have given in to the fear that seeps through the walls they have built around themselves.

I lived in your country for three years, mostly on the East Coast. I can say I love the people and admire many of your achievements and I wouldn’t want you to perceive what I am about to say as criticism. As I see it, the USA have been isolated from most of the world for very long, and slowly, as the distances shrink, the other tribes have come closer and increasingly show you their distaste at some of the particularities you are seen to uphold [mostly, as Walter quite rightly pointed out, through the actions of your elected bodies]. It is a harsh realisation and I am saddened it has been brought about in such a violent fashion, but it is nonetheless an important one, and one not to let go of and slip back into isolation and slumber.

The USA are no different from Europe, Mexico, India, Ghana… There are good things and bad things in every civilization on the planet because civilizations are made up of mostly the same building blocks – men and women who yearn for a care-free existence in a state of slumber. And let’s not be too harsh on them, the difficulties of moving along in life make it feel legitimate to yearn for some respite from the increasingly all-pervasive state of stress. After a hard day’s work who has the time or the desire to check and change anything within themselves, even if they knew that the rewards of such an effort would lead them to a new understanding of the world around them – and to an end for the need to clash?

In the past, I agree, artists, writers, musicians and poets used to constitute an antidote to slumber. They aspired to keep us awake in a good way, to keep us mindful of another dimension within us that required tending to. But today, I fear, even Art and culture are succumbing to the general trend of forgetfulness that is being force-fed on a global scale. We’ve been approaching this theme repeatedly from various angles on these blogs and I know most of you agree. I’m with those of you who have decided to hold on to the belief that it is part of our ‘job’ to work towards that objective despite the current trend.

on Monday, November 27th, Art Worth said

Good read. I love our country, too. It's interesting to see the contrasting perspectives on this site.

on Monday, November 27th, walt, said

From my own travels I have learned that most people around the world picture two countries when they think of the USA. One encompasses the possibilities and good willed people they have met and the other is made of the policies our politicians further based on what is called our national interests. Often times these are not really the interests of the people of the US but those of certain lobbyists and corporations. This is the USA that people around the world hate as it often times affects them in such adverse ways. I've never met anyone overseas who actually admitted to hating the United States of America. They are, as we are slowly becoming, aware that governments do many things that the people have no understanding of, without their express permission and for reasons that may offend once understood. They're used to it because even in democracies much is never brought to a vote.

on Monday, November 27th, Cecil Herring said

Interesting blog, Michael. It's impossible to generalize about cultures. People are individuals each with ideas and ideals. I like my own USA, its bounty, dreams and ability to heal itself through the election process. Vote the bums out as we just did! Our system was one of the best the last time I looked. And the last time I was out of the country, in Europe and Greece I found those countries had dreams of their own and were trying to better themselves and doing a pretty good job of it. For example, I love France's bullet train, that they can take dogs in some restaurants, have a big X on pharmacies, love their food and artists and highlight art every chance they get. I like Greek generosity, honesty and their sense of history. I love Mexico's food, music and warmth as a people. Sometimes I think our elected leaders are in a different county because they get elected and never do what they say they will do nor really act as our representatives. I think our congressmen get to Washington to lead and instead follow lobbyists and the money. Hopefully they will understand we are watching them, learning about them so they must try and represent us! I guess forgiveness is the key to happiness as Dr. Gerald G. Jampolsky said.

on Monday, November 27th, Cecil Herring said

on Monday, November 27th, Vick said

Other countries have good reason to hate America. We are a wealthy country and we don't really share the wealth the way we could. We as Americans can take so much for granted--clean water, access to education, paved roads, some social infrastructure that many countries cannot. You cannot say it's a cultural thing when in fact it is a survival thing, a starvation thing. This post seems to me to be the height of the cultural arrogance you seem to want to point out. As an American you cannot imagine the struggles other people have--the vast majority of the people on planet Earth--merely surviving or the backbreaking work they do in a desperate bid that their children might have a better life than they have. Do you think these people have time to sit around contemplating their navel and thinking deep thoughts about art and culture? Get a clue.

on Monday, November 27th, Andrew said

I liked this one, Michael. The trouble with almost everyone everywhere, is that they all claim to be experts in subjects they know very little about. Opinion is a one rung ladder up to that third story window called knowledge.

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11/27/2006: "CULTURE CLASH"