Our children:
Our children face imminent, exponential, and incalculable changes, far beyond anyone’s prediction. Some refer to a global polycrisis, others dictate a great reset, while some envision a ‘collapse’ spuring the growing study of collapseology. Regardless of the terminology, the cracks are all too vivid for those monitoring the signals in their respective fields.

Our appraisal:
While many conflicting perspectives and much postulating persist around the realities and responses to what comes next, over the past decade, BoARD has been developing its own ‘appraisal’ of events. A synopsis that reveals a distinct cluster of deficiencies in humanity’s trajectory that many at the forefront allude to but few are able to conticulate.

Our focus:
We are exploring how best to articulate this dynamic appraisal; however, there are three emerging and interconnected indicators (signals), axioms (principles), and positions (stances) that now drive our projects.

Our inherent instinctive skills of deep creativity are in decline with sweeping detrimental effects.

Cause(s):
Exponential everything, of information technology, population globalization, instantaneous connectivity. On the flip side, the exponential scarcity, of resources, focus, time.

Effect(s):
Manufactured multi-layered complexity surpassing human comprehension or ‘sense-making’, beyond computational speeds, and thus beyond calculation. Compound modes of complexity leading to social paralysis, implosion, inefficiency, confusion, and stress points, inadvertently affecting individuals. Ineffectiveness for society to achieve positive long-term decision-making.

Our work:
We believe that achieving a shared comprehension is the initial hurdle to overcome. We are developing a visual definition of Hypermesiness to encapsulate the chaotic forces that envelop and entangle us at any given moment. Our particular interest lies in the challenge of working with material that is inherently unquantifiable, unpredictable, and incomprehensible, and the new paradigms this process is revealing.

We call this Hypermesiness: the culmination of invisible, entangled forces impacting everything we do.

Cause(s):
Over-reliance on digital technology, consumerism, and the convenience of mass manufacturing to meet our needs.

Effect(s):
Evolution has favoured genes and neurological types that lean towards processing rather than creation. This cultural shift places less value on the creation and exploration of divergent ideas, iterating innovative solutions, imagining big pictures, embracing and objectifying visions, and observing realities. Societal metabolism now favours short-sighted outcomes and convenience, fueling rapid returns on investment, which selects for processing creativity in the form of free-flowing ‘content’ and ‘prescribed fantasy’. This decline is so advanced that even our once most creative institutions, such as art schools, have become processing hubs.

Our work:
The world urgently needs deep and diverse creative thinking to drive exploration and decision-making. BoARD is developing a rich understanding of the creative spectrum and neurological foundations of creativity. We focus on nurturing creativity in future generations, exploring their relationship with technologies like screens, and developing programs and materials to ensure all children have access to art education.

In 2023, we initiated the first iteration of the OTHER art school.

Humanity is missing a sense of its commonalities, which is hindering effective collective decision-making.

Cause(s):
Scarcity, division, inequality, exploitation, and the diminishing focus on ontology, the sacred, and the sublime. Detachment from nature and separation from art exacerbate these challenges.

Effect(s):
Without a collective vision, global coordination of efforts remains deficient. There is a loss of ontology, coexistence with nature, leading to extinction, environmental destruction, and pollution. Inter-cultural collaboration and coexistence with other species are depleted.

Our work:
We envision an emerging opportunity to align individuals, communities, and cultures around commonalities. This opportunity revolves around the concept of Profound Psycho-Ontological Transformation—a global interconnectedness that weaves a collective ‘point of reference’ and cultivates tangible, embodied, and shared values. This intercultural unity springs from recognizing our shared humanity, fostering a trajectory towards harmonious equilibrium.