Lately I have been thinking about memory and place and the idea of the future.  When I was growing up, the future was limitless possibility, jet-age, space-age techno-utopia. “Modern” meant new. Now, modern means old, and the future I grew up seems dated, irresponsible, obsolete.  I miss the old future and newness of the modern buildings that are old now.

The obsolete future is inscribed in the landscape of the cities where I spend my days and nights. When I encounter these endangered or ruined monuments to the future from the past, gutted or restored or covered in scaffolding, I am moved beyond anything I can explain. I have a feeling of time travel. I feel sentimental about buildings I am not sure I would have liked when they were new.  I am the same age as the buildings. It is a kind of self-portrait.

nostalgia for the future on viralnet