The Illuminati

Photographer Even Baden has created an intriguing portfolio of young adults and their electronic devices.

They have become part of who we are and how we identify ourselves. These devices ordain us with a wealth of knowledge and communication that would have been unbelievable a generation ago. More and more, we are bathed in a silent, soft, and heavenly blue glow. It is as if we carry divinity in our pockets and purses.

Baden's thesis describes the dissonance created by the connection to others and the disconnection between our immediate surroundings. Of course, disconnection has come up with virtual reality (VR), and I bet it come up when popular recreational reading became commonplace. The question remains whether we should embrace this phenomenon as an evolutionary leap in human consciousness (ala Cyberpunk) or fear it as a neo-Luddite (I mean that in the kindest of terms). Regardless, the library needs to meet their patrons and potential patrons where they're at. For digital natives, that's online at their current social network(s) du jour.

(Note: on the other hand, beware of the danger of network fatigue--maybe offer, via the network, the library as third place)

Via: PSFK