The Simplification of Everything

Full transcribed speech spoken to a group of scientists, artists, mathematicians, and innovators for the Stephany Schlachter research competition.

My name is Katie Melzer, and my project is titled The Simplification of Everything.

This is an artistic study representing ideas on the Slow Cancellation of the Future, and how modern society has been stuck in a loop of repetition caused by the digital age. This cancellation stands as a threat towards hope, the future of art, and creativity as a whole.

Now, I would like you to imagine the speed at which technology progressed.

See, I've drawn a picture because I need us to be on the same page here— Neighborhoods used to gather all their information and news from one source, a radio with a few channels. Then this information was scaled down to household responsibility, shared television sets with a choice of material depending on whoever had the remote, and then phones gave everyone a remote, and it doesn’t stop there because technology progressed to a point where we got rid of the need for a remote entirely, algorithms study our actions and give us exactly what we want all the time. 

So, what is an algorithm? Well, it’s a system that decides what shows up on your screen. It measures data like how long you view each post, what you search, while simultaneously targeting your age and gender demographics. This is Instagram, mine, my mom’s, and my brother’s- I love art…obviously, my mom loves home DIYS and labradoodles, and my brother- more of a mixed bag- likes memes and UFC fighting. this is all the same app, yet what we are shown is vastly different. And now, as much as we like to believe we are on the same page- in the time of the radio, we are not. The question lies in whether this algorithm provides an ultimate freedom, or a maliciously controlled perception of freedom. 

We think we know all the news, all the trends, and celebrities- until we are faced with a room full of people who have no clue what we're talking about. That disconnect can really turn your stomach. And the worst part is that the individuality feels good despite the disconnect. I like my algorithm, but it’s also harmful how narrow our view of the world has become due to this personalization. David Foster Wallace compares this conflicted relationship to addiction. In Infinite Jest, he refers to the Samizdat, or The Entertainment, which is a film so compelling that its viewers watch it on repeat until they die. So naturally, my first piece was inspired by this device, and left me with a picture of the algorithm. Something created to hold our individual attention with morals thrown out the window, shown and witheld media. (below, “The Entertainment,” “Cool Shoes,” and “Looming,”)

I talk a lot about how people are influenced by the media, but a larger issue lies on the creators themselves. Those who make the posts and share them…. artists. See, emerging artists have grown up in the digital age. The age where their inspiration is provided for them through these algorithms. And when these young artists seek validation for their art, they look to things that are already successful- things the algorithm has provided them. And they copy it. The plague of copied Pinterest art. They receive validation and the algorithm pushes their content like it’s gold. I figured out this cycle after doing it for five years on TikTok. I would make original art, and then copied art- and every single time the algorithm would favor the copy. It was recognizable, easy to digest, and painfully overdone. And when I realized that I was part of the problem, I couldn’t bear the fact that everything I did (original or not) felt disingenuous- Real artists can’t be content creators, they can’t be too close to their audience or else expectations, perceptions, and knowledge of the algorithm will plague their ability to create original work. The best bands always hid in the forest to make good albums. 

“The Problem” - a representation of the modern creativity loop

Now, I need you to imagine something else for me, without my help this time- and that is the future. What do you see? ….  Cause… I can’t see anything. The only thing we can muster up is the end. This is “The Slow Cancellation of the Future,” a concept coming from Mark Fisher. This inability to imagine something we used to see so clearly- and Back to the Future is a stellar example of that- shows something about a loss of hope. A decline in expectations, and linked- a loss of creativity. 

“The Slow Cancellation of the Future” also stands to shed light on this creativity loop people seem to be stuck in. This loop is based on comfort in nostalgia, an obsession with the past- whether it be scrunchies, the Renaissance, or bubble skirts- our “new trends” are only repetitions of past ones. “Bear Hug” shows the danger of comfort we find in repetition, all promoted by algorithms. But let us note, that nostalgia is a sickness preventing us from moving to a new and original era. 

“Bear Hug” oil on canvas.

With all of this hopelessness in the air, I ask- how do we fix it? How does one reverse the effects of technology? That schizophrenic-inducing algorithm.

And here we are at the simplification of “everything”. 

I started with an experiment. The task was to put a magnifying glass on everyday tasks. I made my bed in the morning and mailed letters. On occasion, I cooked my brother dinner and went for a walk. The more I did these things, the more I could separate the long-term pleasures from the dopamine-fueled short-term distractions. And what resulted was a constant feeling of inspiration. A lost interest in short-term pleasures. Maybe it’s a symptom of growing up or just recognizing the system that has been formed to trap us. It’s seeing your phone as a tool rather than an escape. The biggest component of this experiment was mailed letters. I’m in college, and I don’t see people as much as I used to. And, I loved receiving mail. I loved looking at people's handwriting, and the ceremony of writing an address and placing a stamp. I’m not great at math, but I can promise you — one handwritten letter holds more truth than 10,000 digital comments ever could." It all shows the importance of silencing the noise and slowing down to tap into your creativity. 

My paintings highlight the important things to me, while other things I used to prioritize are now consciously background noise. All of my paintings this year have strong silhouettes, the majority of them composed of human qualities. When you blur your eyes, it’s all you see- and really all you need to see. Composition is the backbone of art, mapping out the eye and showing importance, and pointing invisible arrows to direct. Composition is satisfying. The composition of my life looked a bit like a Pollock painting. Arguably nonexistent. I realized that simple tasks are the arrows of our lives. Our compositions. Normal life pleasures added order to a mess of color and things happening everywhere around us. You need to take in simple pleasures- in the mess that is everything else. 

When you get the urge to look at your phone, I won’t ask you to do anything more than daydream instead. I’m asking you to stare at a wall and find Mickey Mouse in the spackle. Allow your creativity to thrive, and we’ll begin to dream about the future again.