The present contains nothing more than the past and what is found in the effect was already in the cause.
Henri Bergson
Creative Evolution, 1907
Artist Statement
We’ve designed the authorities we have. Henri Bergson’s quote broadens Isacc Newton’s 1675 ‘…on the shoulders of giants’ statement. Bergson’s all-encompassing idea expands Newton’s point of view from focusing on greatness upon greatness, to include everything. Most recently, Beatriz Colomina and Mark Wigley extend this dialogue, in their book Are We Human, by considering how the designed artifacts and systems are in fact designing us. Here, Bergson’s quote has been designed in a moment in history where de-escalation of tension between the Police and the Public is intentionally being sought. We’ve gone from squad cars with names like Crown Victoria to models now called INTERCEPTOR. Perhaps we should consider the effect of America’s aggressive aesthetics of authority and its role in escalated tensions.
Great Ideas at ChiDM, 2018. Photo: The Office of Experience.
