Traditional To Contemporary Essay

Abstract

This paper seek to provide a clarification in the definition of the terms, traditional used to refer to the past, the visionary referring to the future and the contemporary used to refer to the present. The paper explore the use of various articles as well as provided films which include the fountainhead, the blade runner, and the principal in an attempt to provide a clear understanding.

Introduction

Traditional is anything from the past. According to the dictionary traditional is derived from tradition, which means a part of culture or practice that is passed from one generation to another. In arts, traditionally refers to the films and styles that were produced and used to produce respectively in the past. Contemporary according to English dictionary mean anything that is of the present age or modern. It can also be used to mean things that are from the same, period, time or coexistent in time. Contemporary refers to the current practices in the art industry that is how films are produced, what kind of styles are used. Lastly, Visionary is used in art to refer to the future. According to the dictionary, is the ability to have a vision, which is to have positive ideas in regard to the future. In the art visionary refers to all the set of ideas and films that are expected to transpire in the future; that is the expected transformation in the art industry. The Fountainhead is an American film produced in 1948 based on the book “of the same name” by Any Rand. The blade runner is was produced in 1982. This is a science fiction film and a modified film adaptation of the Novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” By Philip K., Dick wrote in 1968. The principal is a crime action film that was filmed in 1987 at Oakland, Califonia.

The Fountainhead

The fountainhead represented the traditional. This is a film that faced struggle with traditional versus the visionary and the contemporary since it was produced when international style was at its peak. Right from the beginning the writer of the screenplay, Rand, provided a setting that collected a society that new architectural ideas and individuals are not accepted. All buildings had to be constructed ‘like Gothic cathedrals, Greek temples and Mongrel of each ancient style they could get’. This was a pure representation of the past. He criticized Hollywood film, industry for imposing themselves as ‘giving the public what it need.’ He refuses to give in to the public demand. This shows the conflict that he struggled with between traditional and the visionary.
During its production stage, Ran’s screenplay had precisely instructed that the Frank Lloyd Wright style was to be used, which was to be taken as Roark’s buildings’ model. He aimed at making the audience admire the Roark’s buildings. He turned down contemporary designs suggested by architects throughout the country. The architectural design by Edward Carrere was much closer to the ‘international style’ considered to be corporate and of the East coast compared to Wright’s architecture that was for 1920s from mid-west. Just because Edward did not practice architecture yet he had trained Rand disputed his design as copied from ‘horrible modernistic buildings’ pictures. The film therefore was a clear representation of the past that is traditional. From it setting and ideas.

The Blade Runner

The Blade Runner set up represented the contemporary with its set up done in an urban environment. The environment in which the film is shot depicts a well built-up urban area. This shows the modern architectural designs. The styles that were used in the film made a representation of the transformation of the architectural designs from traditional as seen in the Fountainhead film to modern. The producers and screenplay writer of the Blade Runner was not rigid to traditional styles rather he gave room for new designs from which they choose the best for the film.
Further the film gave a representation of technological change. The ability to use fiction in movie creation as a modern mode of production is evident in the fast runner, for example, the fictional flying cars that were used. The spinner could be driven on the ground and vertically take off vertically, cruise and hover using jet propulsion just like vertical take-off aircraft. The film also had a fictional interrogation tool. This was a tool used to detect if a given suspect I truly human. The film also demonstrated the disparities in social classes across the world in the contemporary globe. The wealthy people could be allowed to acquire the license of a spinner yet it was being restricted. The security situation of the contemporary world was also depicted in the film through the creation of the spinners to be used by the police in surveying the populations.
Further, the Blade Runner film was a representation of a visionary. The film created a picture of how the future can look like or in other words what will happen in the future. Through having to differentiate between real people and robots the fictional interrogation tool was established. This creates an anticipation that it will reach a time in the future where robots will be created exactly as humans. Secondly it also shows the change in technology over the years. It is expected that in the future an interrogation tool would be invented, and flying vehicles which can still be driven on the ground. In simple terms, the movie depicts a future that is guided by technology in almost all aspects of life.

Conclusion

The traditional which is the past refers to the practices that were done in the past and are passed from one generation to the next, for instance, the old architectural designs in Fountainhead film. Nevertheless, as time goes by the traditional practices are shade off as they are modified and transformed into a new set of practice which is now referred to as the contemporary. The contemporary practices are derived from the traditional practices for instance they are passed down from the one generation to the next which modifies it. The architectural designs in the Fountainhead of 1940s are not the same as the architectural designs in the blade runner film of 1980s. In spite passing the knowledge of architectural designs from one generation to the next, the designs are developed and changed to fit the time and period. Lastly the Visionary are the anticipated or expected practices in the future, for instance, the Blade Runner envisions a future that is dependent on technology. This will be as a result of improving on the contemporary technology to achieve the best. That is the humans keep growing and developing from the traditional forms from Homo habilis (ape with ability) to Homo sapiens (ability to understand) to Homo Economicus (a person who wants to use).