Avant-gardism
Avant-garde, or vanguard, is the ability to see, practise, and get the next wave before it crashes into society; it is a superpower that some people can have. Some artists and thinkers claim to have it by showing their work, art and experimentations, but few really are ahead of their time and are often misunderstood.
Every creative profession experiences movements, fads, stylistic shifts, and evolving preferences and practices.
But how do trends happen, and how are they sourced and predicted? Is a trend defined by its newness, like a discovery or a new technology, or influenced by the market, institutions or important figures?
As an example, the Pantone Colour Institute,
The Pantone Colour Institute studies colour trends throughout the year to decide on the next Pantone colour of the year. They take into consideration all aspects of society: fashion, marketing, social media, and even politics. The hue chosen as the Colour of the Year has become increasingly influential in the vast world of design and brand marketing. The first Colour of the Year was selected back in 2000, but it wasn’t until 2007 that colour trend forecasting took on a life of its own. Nowadays, when a new colour is announced, Pantone offers colour lovers an array of inspirational products and colour combination palettes designed especially with the corresponding colour in mind. Hundreds of brands take on the task of designing products with the colour of the year. This reinforces the importance of the Pantone colour trend forecast, which is important and influential.
Studying and analysing people’s and society’s behaviours and thinking to predict and influence the future taste and style is easy today with social media and big data, which is mainly controlled by big corporations such as Google and Meta, for instance.
So, how can a creative person be an avant-gardist?
After studying and following various personalities for a long time, I've seen them as avant-gardes that have been adding something new that impacted the world or at least their fields of expertise.
It is mainly a personal trait and a gift from God that they had to protect and maintain, and for most of them, it was a long road of suffering, but their love of the journey makes it bearable and enjoyable.
Those are their habits and traits.
They love and enjoy their passion; money comes next.
They understand and master their field.
They bring value and change.
Knowledge and curiosity: “They know something about everything. ”
They expand their thinking.
They analyse society and people.
They are out of the box.
They are mentally strong to criticism and take it positively.
They are truthful, fearless and free.
They appreciate times of struggle.
They raise their consciousness.
They are responsible for thoughts and actions.