The word “cult” refers to a religious group
whose beliefs are considered extreme or strange by many people,
and/or a social or cultural phenomenon of intense admiration and devotion towards
an artist, a piece of art, or a well-known aesthetic.
When we talk about cult items, we often speak in terms of renowned old films,
world stars, subcultures or just famous things. Those cults are the cultural phenomenons that
originated in the past whose effects still pervade–
But what about the cults of tomorrow?
Each cultural phenomenon is shaped by time.
In this case, tomorrow’s cult culture must be born around this time.
Looking at today’s media and pop culture landscape, this resonates.;
celebrities, trends, icons:–the word ‘cult’ has already found new life.
It begs the following questions: will they still remain ‘iconic’?
Will today’s icons become the subjects of adoration for the cults of tomorrow?
Or has the term cult already become empty,?
Can it stagnate even more so?
Nobody has a definitive answer yet,; neither do I.
The world, for its cultures, societies, and individuals, is ever-evolving.
We are all changing and becoming more individualistic.
By individualistic, people seem more expressive about their preferences these days. Variety has increased in every sense, or it may just be that people appear more idiosyncratic.
Either way, even the meanings we attach to items have clearly changed and,
foreseeably, will continue to do so.
This is largely due to developments in technology and opportunities that have enabled more people able to create something, making truer or more ‘authentic’ statements.
Think of all the 8 billion people on earth today. It means that there are 8 billion opinions.
In order for something to become part of tomorrow’s cult, at least some of the global majority needs to align in their preferences.
Yet, in today’s world,
where people are seeming more individualistic,
and tastes more fractured,
such a collective landslide may not be mathematically attainable.
Developing the so-called cults of tomorrow looks like a challenge harder than ever before.
It is hard to predict what tomorrow’s cult will look like
In spite of this, we can hope
that cult culture will persist.