Digital Nostalgia -- An Essay

The crappy internet aesthetics of the 2010s defined by flashy animation gifs, vibrant fonts, and low-quality rendered 3D models pull me back in time into the world of my childhood. Powerpoint slides with saturated gradients and dancing gifs look too corny, elaborate transparent glass windows simulate a clean, aquatic energy on Windows 7 desktops, even machines that embody the digital interface look metallic and chiseled, almost too complicated nowadays for a mundane item such as a watch. All of these examples are such distinct designs that carry so much personality. These designs of the past are a nostalgic futurism that embodies hope for a better future, with more advanced technology enhancing our lives: the gifs look fun and playful, the windows look like a fresh breeze merged with nature, the watches look beautiful and complex. My childhood optimism waned with the rise of new design aesthetics and technology. We no longer live in our promised techno world, but reside in one that is minimalistic to the extent of anonymity and one that accelerates artificial intelligence towards a well-informed possibility of mutual destruction.

Our world is run not by idealistic people but run by people who endorse the myth of maximizing productivity = better future. the all-white blank canvas interface of every single big tech company website is a metaphor for this symptom of greed. We no longer need personality but need efficiency, any wasted space or irrelevant information is CLEANSED with a bloody, piercing white. Ironically, the social media tycoons reduced the distraction of their design existence (the white background, the simple scrolling motion) to highlight the distraction of the overstimulating media pumped out by the millions -- even overstimulation is industrialized to its purest form: identity is removed, content is decontextualized, only stimulation is left.

The promise of an interconnected social network results in a foreign, isolated feeling that fuels billions of people in a zombie-like trance every single hour in their "doom scroll".

Design nowadays have clarity, they are effortless to navigate with optimized user interface and contrasted elements. Unlike good video games, navigating the modern internet has no challenges to get any reward out of it. While the old "crappy" internet has difficulties and challenges, the lack of sophistication and the rawness of the design create a space for expectation, promise, and hope for a more sophisticated future; the newfound interconnectedness online leads us to cultural understanding and friendship in a globalized world, which we stepped in to find nothing but disappointment.