Vidi, Latin for "I saw," is just that: things that have caught my editorial eye. The focus is on popular and high culture in developing countries, something that more often than not is ignored or little discussed. For the purposes of this blog, I will include in the category "developing" pretty much any non-OECD nation. Although this definition is kind of arbitrary and completely focused on economic measures, it suits the purpose of my project. The goal of Vidi is to show that southern and eastern countries can make headlines for something other than political and economic difficulties. However, I will make an effort to link the topics to socio-cultural issues and current events in the countries concerned.
Some countries are already well-covered in cultural publications, notably those in Latin America. Other regions, such as Africa and the Middle East, are usually topics of discussion because of some dire situation or another. The idea behind Vidi is that paying attention to our common points, such as visual and material culture, will remind us that politics and economics should be secondary to our relationships to one another as human beings. In other words, acknowledging our common interests begins the conversation on more positive ground and the differences can be approached in a more civil manner.
As stated above, part of Vidi's focus will be on popular culture. This comes from a totally personal belief that popular culture is allowing different cultures to come together like never before. We may not be able to agree on which book is the holiest, but we are capable of dancing to a good beat or laughing at a clever commercial, regardless of where these are produced. Popular culture as it is exists on a globalised scale is an opportunity to create a new, multi-layered identity based less on division and more on commonality.
Ultimately, the goal of Vidi is to showcase the creativity of humanity in whatever form that creativity takes. It is also meant to show that things are not black and white - failed states do not equal failed cultures, material poverty doesn't preclude the abiltiy to do and create amazing things. So while the word "vidi" is more commonly associated with conquest, perhaps we can begin to associate it with creativity: I came, I saw, I was inspired.
