If Theory #1 wasn’t flattered by the name Theory then Theory #2 certainly is.

Whilst grieving – in a distant way – over then recent Norwegian massacre. I found myself reflecting on how innovations in art as in scienc,e allow us to think in new ways. I thought about Battle Royale in which young people are massacred on an island. I thought about anti-heroes and ice cold blue eyed killers in films. I thought about thinking about strategies for mass killings. I marveled at how little I know of those cases in which ‘art’ is cited as a psychological cue for murder.

Whilst grieving – in a close-up way – over the recent English riots. I found myself reflecting on how innovations in art, as in science, allow us to think in new ways. I thought about rioters referring to police as Feds (I don’t know how widely). I remembered a documentary about a supposed girl gang in Nottingham in which a girl claims she was wanted for ‘Grand Theft Auto’. I thought about the streets as a playground and Blast Theory’s playful confluence of real and digital spaces. I though a lot about walk through computer games which I don’t and have no desire to play. I marveled at how, sitting at home watching the news, your perceptions of your own city can detach from the world beyond your curtained windows.

I don’t believe that art can be put on trial for murder, but I do believe art can allow us to think things that have never been thought before and I do believe it is difficult to do something you haven’t thought of. I believe art can change the tone and texture and attitudes of society – it is partially the reason I choose to be an artist – therefore I believe being an artist brings with it a certain responsibility. I do not believe in shooting people or looting or banning art.