The Uncarved Blog

Love in the Digital Age

By British photographer Adam Gray

Our current obsession with social media and mobile devices seems to have improved our connectivity with each other, but it is also changing it for the worse. Here are two innovative creative videos that remind us how social media can destroy, not build, relationships.

Lee Ross’s creatively produced vignette brilliantly demonstrates the breakdown in human interaction; while Prince Ea intelligently raps about the problem, ironically pointing out what we’re missing. They both beg the question: Are we really living life, communicating and developing meaningful relationships?

I continue find and add relevant cartoons and videos, as well as some possible solutions to this modern problem.

1. From a comedic perspective 4gLove by LEE ROSS is a funny but sadly true depiction of cellphone addiction destroying relationships. This 5-minute film is available on Vimeo and YouTube.

2. We are so consumed by our phones and social networks, we sometimes forget how to live. Prince Ea says the obvious in this video: Why I Refuse to Let Technology Control Me: You need not delete your social networks or destroy your cell phones, the message is simple, be balanced, be mindful, be present, be here. 🙂 If you like his message you can download the digital audio Can We Auto-Correct Humanity?

Rick Hotton’s Holy Mole´ cartoon amusingly makes the same point. There are other videos out there on this topic. Here are two poems about the problem, Look Up by Gary Turk, and a counter argument, Look Down (‘Look Up’ Parody) by Spencer & Alex. Clever, both of them, with charming British accents.

The Human Experience tweeted this ironic cartoon about the problem.

This picture posted by powerofpositivity says/shows the same problem: Cellphones bring you closer to a person who’s far from you. But it takes you away from the ones sitting next to you.

See the brilliant depiction of the grip of modern technology over our brains by British cartoonist and animator Steve Cutts in these cartoons: OWNED, and this unusual selfie: SENT FROM MY IBRAIN.

This clever Instagram cartoon literally and visually nails the dilemma of people being prisoners of their cell phones.

New Yorker cartoonist Alex Gregory on what social media is doing to us.

Some Solutions to the Problem

Here is a brilliant solution to this problem I found two years after this posting: NoPhone Air: the Latest iPhone Aimed at Cellphone Addicts. Watch this brilliant TEDxUtrecht Talk Ben Langeveld & Ingmar Larsen gave: How a piece of plastic can change the world.

Here’s another solution. Watch what happens when this person reaches for their phone: the dog stages an intervention.

This cartoon shows another approach in dealing with the problem.

Tags: 4gLove, Can We Auto-Correct Humanity?, cellphones, communication, connectivity, Facebook, Gary Turk, handheld devices, iPhones, lack of communication, Lee H. Ross, Lee Ross, losing contact with each other, missing out on living, mobile devices, Prince Ea, rapping, Skype, smartphones, social media, social networks, Spencer & Alex, videos

This entry was posted on October 16, 2014 at 6:51 pm and is filed under Videos. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.