Many years ago, I read a book entitled Future Shock. The title referred to the experience of culture shock within one’s own culture. Future shock hadn’t happened yet, its author argued, but it was coming. And now? Many people, perhaps most, would agree that it’s upon us. Some are amused, some are bemused, some are frightened, some are hopeful. But everyone, it seems, is reacting. And surrealism, an art form that first emerged 100 years ago, has suddenly reemerged as a meaningful way to do that. Partly because of advancements in digital imaging, but more so, I suspect, because, well, future shock is here.
Click on any image to enlarge it, or to begin slide show.
Mitch Teemley 
Mitch, that book had a profound effect on me when I read it years ago.
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It did on a lot of people, it seems, Rosaliene.
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Very surreal.
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Alvin Toffler’s Future Shock is one of those books you never forget. It came out in 1970, while I was in my second year of college. My major was sociology, thus it stands to reason that it was on my resding list. I believe one of my professors recommended it.
I started to see the revelations of the future when the little backward state (Arkansas) in which I was born, and in which I still reside began to diversify. It seemed overnight cars started to look Japanese, people took on looks other than the traditional Black and white, our culture began to look like we were part and parcel of the global village.
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Incredible photos!
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Wow, some are pretty thought-provoking and some are a bit scary.
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Yes, what a collection of photos.
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I read Future Shock in the early 70’s, and have marveled how accurate it was for our time. It lends a better understanding of our society and the effect of instantaneous news. The book describes news taking months to travel across our nation; now we are aware of events as they occur. Shock is the proper term to describe our response.
Over thirty years ago I came across some teens in Appalachia, and it was difficult to understand them. I realized then that their speech would eventually become like everyone else’s after being constantly exposed to television and radio.
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Indeed. The predicted “global village” is turning out to be less cozy than it sounded, isn’t it, Gary? Good to hear from you, btw!
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Digital art… I don’t know.
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I’m still in Present Shock.
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;>)
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I literally picked that book off my shelf last night and read some of it for the first time.
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!
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Love the images. Visuals speak volumes.
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This is actually amusing, but at the same time really scary. Beautiful in their own way too.
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Really interesting! Thanks, Mitch.
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My pleasure, Frank.
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Read that too Mitch. I wonder often about the new souls, the young children, for they are immersed into this without the context of something previous, how directionless it must seem to sensitive ones, disorienting. FS was written more from the point of view of adults who had at least experienced more normalized conditions and had something to compare ‘chaos’ to. But what do they have?
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Very good point, Stolzy.
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Wouldn’t Salvador Dali have fun with the artistic capabilities of technology today? Then again, he might consider it cheating!
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He would!
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the fish almost looks like a bug
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Awesome photos
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