In The Presence

Another way of doing sort of the same thing as my last work; but that’s part of the experimenting process, yes? Create something new, then create a variation, then create another variation, then another variation, pretty soon the artist has a series of works exploring a similar theme, all from different approaches. When that seems played out, move on – don’t get stagnate. You’ve only so much time to do this.

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In my lifetime there have been many changes in the way we consume broadcast media. We went from black and white to color, smaller TV’s to enormous consoles, a handful of broadcast channels to a whole dozen channels on cable. Cable channels grew from a dozen to several dozen. Satellite joined cable as another source. VCR’s made it possible to consume on one’s own time rather than adhering to a broadcast schedule (so long as one could program the VCR) as well as the ability to consume movies and other productions at home. DVR’s and DVD players supplanted VCR’s, and BluRay supplanted DVD’s. Now streaming services, using an Internet backbone, kick all that to new levels, giving artists vast new platforms for creating new work; there are so many streamers looking for content. Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, Disney+, Apple+, HBO Max, Showtime, Starz, CBS All Access, Peacock, BritBox, Sundance Now, Curiosity Stream; I’m certainly forgetting something. It’s an embarrassment of riches. And, believe it or not, the traditional networks and basic cable channels still produce good stuff, particularly AMC and FX (though, please note, I detest ‘reality TV’ in all it’s forms).

Here’s the problem: Nobody can afford all that shit.

Here’s the other problem: Nobody has time to watch it all.

I pay full price for just one of the services listed above. Two more I get at reduced rates due to sales, and one I get for free on a promotional deal. And if I spent every waking second for the next week watching the things I’d like to see on those services I still wouldn’t get through it all. There’s an array of acclaimed works I’ve never seen simply because I don’t subscribe to their services: Game Of Thrones, Homeland, The Handmaid’s Tale, Westworld, The Man In The High Castle, Star Trek Discovery, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Granted, I could subscribe to a service, pretty much catch up, then cancel that service and move on to a different one. I take it a lot of people do that, but geez …

Sheltering at home has greatly ratcheted up the amount of time many people watch programming. Me, maybe just an extra hour or two here and there. In a way, streaming only illustrates existence as a whole. There’s only so much time to do anything. How much do you want to spend.