On memes and the counter-culture.

 

Theorist and curator Mike Watson advances the argument for "acid leftism". What is this, and why do we need a new counter-culture? Is contemporary leftism lacking a utopian imaginary?

 

Plus: slow memes and fast memes; the democratisation of art and media; and generations: which ones became conservative, which might not?

 

Running order:

(00:04:15) - Interview with Mike Watson

(01:02:00) - 'Afterparty' discussion on what a counter-culture might look like today

Readings:

Can the Left Learn to Meme? , Mike Watson, Zero Books

The Acid Left, YouTube channel

The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, Walter Benjamin (pdf)