Problem

Since October 1, the BK Information a podcast about tipping points in the professional practice of visual artists, and sometimes such a tipping point is a transition. In response to this podcast series, I wrote a essay on change and transition and how they are accompanied by uncertainty. I wrote about this, "In a period of transition, there is always 'loss of the old'. Our brain wants to keep us safe and alive; major transitions do not fit into that and are perceived as threatening. Although many of the current threats in the part of the world where we live are no longer life-threatening, our brain still protects us as if they are."

Fighting, Fleeing, Freezing, Pleasen

Meanwhile, it is increasingly clear that the world has entered a problematic transition that is perceived as threatening. The associated chaos and uncertainty can lead to fear and lethargy. You probably know, from hearsay, the four possible reactions in the face of danger: Fight, Flight, Freeze, Pleasen. Or in English: Fight, Flight, Freeze, Fawn. 

With more and more craziness and danger in the world, you see something similar at the global level. Many European countries have settled into a "pleasing" attitude: we don't anger anyone and adapt verbally. Venezuelans, for fear of reprisals and the identifiable threat of the colectivos to "freeze. The Danish prime minister we saw in the fight-mode regarding Greenland and worldwide, some 120 million people are fleeing misery at home. 

Artists' role to represent new narratives and futures

In the relatively safe Netherlands, we pack emergency kits and toughen up a bit. But what happens to art and artists in an uncertain time when politics is all about "hard, measurable values"? That varies from person to person, of course, but some trends are visible, for example those in which artists focus more on social issues such as climate change, social inequality and the impact of AI. Artists have the role of imagining new narratives and futures beyond pragmatic politics and the socially engaged art gets more space and attention. Something else that stands out is that more and more research shows that in a confused and confusing world, art has significant value for mental well-being and stress reduction.

If we all ended up in the same mode, we would have a problem with it. 

So "we" can do something and each does it in his own way. And fail, is the state of the world too crippling? That is perfectly understandable and normal. The way each individual reacts to danger has little to do with choices or heroism: it often involves unconscious choices and has to do with how you are "made," how the connections in the brain run. For that matter, it's just as well that these differences exist. Because if we all ended up in the same mode, we would have a problem with it.