What is Culture?

 

Culture is the inclusion of recognisable aspects and/or predicaments relating to one, or multiple ways in which diverse groups can live their lives. These include characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, encompassing language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts. To me, culture is the differences in people’s ways of living and it can be quite personal, as everyone has individual rituals and traditions they follow, which can be from a mix from different countries and groups. I will be looking at different categories such as the ones above, but on a broader spectrum, but first, here are some possible ideas on what can be done for the brief within culture:

• Hobbies

• Opinions

• Experiences

• Passions​

• Strengths

• History

• Family

• Friends

• Important messages/problems

Cultural Topics

 

Media & Film

 

Characteristics: A wide topic, which covers a lot of different formats, such as TV, streaming, Youtube, advertisement and billboards. It can, however, often be limited by companies, genre or audiences and will need to be specific to them.

Conventions: It is often media revolving around factual events, both old and current, and usually has creative writing and liberties to make new content.

Opportunities: Short films, documentaries or clips around your interest(s) are good options, or you could try out something new by experimenting with skills and techniques.

Examples: Franchise fandoms // Effects of advertisements // The growth of social media

 

 

Music & Live Events

 

Characteristics: Can be both loud and large – ‘living in the moment’ such as with concerts and music festivals, but also quiet and personal, with deeper meaning and representations, such as with more modern-day songs that tackle mental health issues through powerful lyrics.

Conventions: There are quite strong conventions for each genre (e.g. people who listen to rock are ‘rough and tough’) but for the topic overall, people are usually strongly supportive or against certain artists and songs whilst musicians are considered free spirits who use their passion to convey something or capture a personality.

Opportunities: You could look into music videos and highlight the tropes they utilise, or live events, to capture moments and opinions.

Examples: Foreign music (the rise of kpop) // Song topics (old vs new) // Specific genres and their characteristics

 

   

 

Games and Streaming

 

Characteristics: They are featured on and influences by social media such as Twitch, YouTube and Facebook and they heavily rely on constant content, attention and relevance. A lot of people now see this culture as a viable career to dedicate their time to, and many have become successful thanks to it.

Conventions: Typically, older generations are not that involved, and game companies tend to aim their products towards younger people who like to be sat at home playing. Despite this, you can make a lot of money if you know how to entertain your audience.

Opportunities: A great format to consider is an animation, short or advert about a specific game or genre of games. You could also base it around a game/content creator.

Examples: Violent games = violent people? // Twitch & YouTube surprising // Breaking stereotypes

 

    

 

People & Lifestyle

 

Characteristics: Magazines, adverts and social media are often at the forefront of our lives, despite the fact that we all have our own story. This proclivity to share our lives and connect to other people is the basis for this topic, and since you can post and read about absolutely anything, the topic is quite broad.

Conventions: Influencers and social media are gaining more and more momentum and show no signs of slowing down, showing us that the modern world is both accepting and backwards.

Opportunities: Here, a documentary highlighting personal experiences, or a poster campaign showcasing minority cultures are both good examples of what to base a project around.

Examples: BLM // Religion // Family and heritage // Travel Culture // Technological advancements

 

    

 

More Culture Examples

 

Western Culture

 

The culture of European countries as well as those that have been heavily influenced by European immigration, such as the United States, according to Khan University, with roots in the Classical Period of the Greco-Roman era and the rise of Christianity in the 14th century. Latin, Celtic, Germanic and Hellenic ethnic and linguistic groups also drive Western Culture, which can be seen in almost every country in the world.

 

Eastern Culture

 

Generally refers to the societal norms of countries in Far East Asia (including China, Japan, Vietnam, North Korea and South Korea) and the Indian subcontinent. Eastern culture was also heavily influenced by religion during its early development but unlike the West, also by the growth and harvesting of rice. In this culture, the distinction between secular society and religious philosophy is much smaller than with Western Culture.

 

Latin Culture

 

Consists of many Spanish-speaking nations, but is widespread geographically. Latin America is typically defined as those parts of Central America, South America and Mexico where Spanish or Portuguese are the dominant languages. While Spain and Portugal are on the European continent, they are considered the key influencers of what is known as Latin culture, which denotes people using languages derived from Latin, also known as Romance languages.

 

Middle Eastern Culture

 

Since the Middle East consists of approximately 20 countries, it isn’t surprising that they have some, but not many things in common. The Arabic language is one thing that is common throughout the region; however, the wide variety of dialect can sometimes make communication difficult. Since it is also the birthplace of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, religion is another cultural area that the countries of the Middle East have in common.

 

African Culture

 

Because human life originated on this continent and began to migrate to other areas of the world around 60,000 years ago, (according to the Natural History Museum in London) the continent of Africa is essential to all cultures and is home to a number of tribes, ethnic and social groups. One of the key features of this culture is the large number of ethnic groups throughout the 54 countries on the continent. Nigeria alone has more than 300 tribes, for example. Currently, Africa is divided into two cultural groups: North Africa and Sub – Saharan Africa, due to the fact that Northwest Africa has strong ties to the Middle East, while Sub-Saharan Africa shares historical, physical and social characteristics that are very different to that of their Northern counterpart. There are a number of languages, cuisines, art and musical styles that have sprung up among the far-flung populations of Sub – Saharan Africa, largely due to the harsh environment.

 

We also did some research in a group, on one of the possible cultures that you could choose for this brief:

 

 

It was inspirational and useful to me to do this research, as I hadn’t looked into Indian fashion before. I was also grateful to learn about a subject which I will be lightly touching upon in my project, specifically for France and their way of dress.

 

I found a definition, or rather a description of a facet of culture which I find astounding and true, and I wanted to share it exactly as it was put. I believe that this is why it is so hard to pinpoint humanity as being one specific thing, because of the constant, colourful change that marks our very nature:

 

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No matter what culture people are a part of, one thing is for certain, it will change. “Culture appears to have become key in our interconnected world, which is made up of so many ethnically diverse societies, but also riddled by conflicts associated with religion, ethnicity, ethical beliefs, and, essentially, the elements which make up culture,” De Rossi said. “But culture is no longer fixed if it ever was. It is essentially fluid and constantly in motion.” This makes it so that it is difficult to define any culture in only one way. 

”

My Chosen Culture

 

My idea is about French and art culture, so I would say it best fits into ‘People and lifestyle’ and ‘Western Culture’. I have chosen these two subjects because I am passionate about them and would like to bring more appreciation of artwork, elegance and refinement into the world. I knew that because of this, I would stray far away from things like games and streaming, and media and film, because I am simply not as interested in them and would not be as determined to put across a certain message.

Most people associate French culture with Paris, which is a centre of fashion, cuisine, art and architecture, but life outside of the City of Lights is very different and varies by region. Historically, French culture was influenced by Celtic and Gallo-Roman cultures as well as the Franks, a Germanic tribe and has played an important role as a centre of high culture since the 17th century and from the 19th century on, worldwide.

I have chosen a beautiful, museum- esque aesthetic for my project, with magical elements and I plan to use conventions surrounding France in a positive way, simultaneously breaking stereotypes whilst using them. Here are some quick examples, but I will dedicate a post to capturing the visual aesthetic of my project: