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Anytime I have the opportunity to dine at a nicer restaurant, there is always someone immediately pulling out their phone to take a photo of the food when it arrives. Taking pictures of beautifully plated food is the ultimate pointless exercise many of us do anyway. Unless you’re a food or culture influencer, you’re probably … Read more
If you have ever gone out with a camera to try and capture animals in the wild doing something interesting, you might have felt that moment of elation when you manage to capture the magic moment. Once in a while, that image might even be something funny. This week, the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards announced … Read more
Freelance artist Beth Spencer had a brilliant idea that went viral. She suggested that artists hand draw their own version of a “created with human intelligence” badge to put on their work to distinguish it from AI-generated art. The idea caught fire among other designers presumably also looking for a way to separate their art … Read more
The British Museum has faced plenty of criticism for its continued policy to hold onto its archives that were built from artifacts that were looted from native cultures around the world. To offer the museum “a taste of its own medicine,” Brazilian conceptual artist Ilê Sartuzi spent a year planning the oddest of heists. His piece … Read more
One of the group conversations I had last weekend required each participant to share something that we think is bullsh*t. My choice was political advertising, which David Ogilvy famously suggested ought to be stopped because “it’s the only really dishonest kind of advertising that’s left.” Someone else in our group nominated modern art … and … Read more
The day after the Met Gala, the Internet was flooded with deep fakes of celebrities who weren’t there, wearing things they never wore. Some of them were pretty convincing. The future of art, fashion, and music will see all sorts of disruptions in the coming years from technology like this. Where is all of this headed? … Read more
Sold artwork at an art fair receives a revered red dot sticker indicating it has found a home, or it has been “placed” (in art lingo). But what does it take to make that sale and who are these collectors who travel to the world’s biggest art festivals, checkbook in hand ready to become a … Read more
I don’t often buy into the cringe-worthy hyperbole you often get from press releases, but the opening of The Sphere in Las Vegas might not be exaggerating (much). The Sphere is a huge dome structure covered by LED lights and large enough to fit the Statue of Liberty inside. The opening show is a new live set … Read more
Next week I’ll be back in Australia speaking at the international edition of SXSW in Sydney.
In addition to doing a Featured Session, I’ll be recording two episodes LIVE from the stage for my upcoming Non-Obvious Show podcast (launching later this year).
Last year, a US judge issued a landmark ruling that an artist “cannot copyright duct tape or bananas.” These were the two primary materials used by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan when he taped a banana to a wall, called it art and then was promptly sued by another artist who said he was actually the first to duct tape fruit to a … Read more
Non-Obvious Thinking is my latest book about the 4 secrets of becoming a non-obvious thinker - relesaed 10/01/2024.
Rohit Bhargava is a trend curator, founder of the Non-Obvious Company and the 3-time Wall Street Journal bestselling author of ten books.
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In addition to Non-Obvious Thinking, Rohit is the author of 10 books on trends, the future of business, building a more human brand with storytelling and how to create a more diverse and inclusive world.
