I recently came across a fascinating video from an Art Forum panel held at the Morgan Library where five brilliant arts professionals discussed where we are and where we're headed in these uncertain times. What struck me most was critic Charlotte Kent's analysis of the medieval "Dance of Death" – a visual meme that spread across Europe during the 100 Years War and plague era.
This centuries-old phenomenon wasn't just macabre artwork. The Danse Macabre emerged in the late Middle Ages during a perfect storm of catastrophes - the Black Death that killed 30-60% of Europe's population and the devastating Hundred Years' War between France and England (1337-1453).
The earliest known visual example was a now-lost mural painted in 1424-1425 at the Cemetery of the Holy Innocents in Paris. It depicted a procession where skeletons or corpses led living people of all social ranks - from pope and emperor to merchants, peasants and children - in a dance toward death. This democratic approach to mortality was revolutionary in the highly stratified medieval society.
What fascinates me about the Dance of Death is how it functioned as both memento mori (remember you must die) and social equalizer. As Kent noted in the panel, it became so widespread that even Dominican monasteries, known for leading the medieval Inquisition, eventually painted these images on their walls. A subversive folk practice had been institutionalized.
It wasn't merely a gruesome reminder of mortality - it was a technological and cultural response to trauma, a way for communities to process overwhelming societal upheaval through simplified visual narrative. Sound familiar?
Kyla Scanlon said it well, "2024 was the year narrative ate reality." Memes have become our modern Dance of Death – tools that help us "process the massive amount of information thrown at us every single day." They're no longer just jokes; they're how we make sense of an increasingly complex world. But this raises a troubling question: What happens when our primary mode of understanding complex realities becomes reduced to such simplified visual snippets?
The Dramaturgy of Data
Another panelist, artist Raphael Lozano-Hemmer, introduced a concept that's been keeping me up at night: "data dramaturgy." Unlike mere data visualization, dramaturgy creates narrative from data, helping people emotionally connect with otherwise abstract information.
This is precisely what memes do. They're not just images with text; they're emotional shortcuts that transform complex issues into digestible narratives. Kyla also argues that the meme of any plan matters more than the plan itself. When algorithms and engagement metrics drive content delivery, we increasingly consume emotional narratives rather than factual information. The concern grows when we consider how these systems work. Research shows that social media algorithms act as "filter bubbles" that isolate users in information environments that reinforce existing beliefs, making them less critical of political misinformation. These algorithmic echo chambers don't just limit what we see – they transform how we process information.
What we're witnessing is a fundamental shift in how humans make meaning. Traditional information hierarchies have been flattened, with emotions and engagement becoming primary criteria for what spreads rather than accuracy or depth. As Scanlon notes, when "algorithms perfected their role as the new architects of desire," our information ecosystem became dominated by content optimized for reaction rather than reflection. This transformation makes perfect sense when we consider the economic incentives. Platforms profit from engagement, not enlightenment. Emotionally charged, simplified narratives drive more clicks, shares, and comments than nuanced analysis. The system isn't broken – it's working exactly as designed. My concern isn't just about the spread of misinformation, though that's certainly troubling, it's about what happens to our cognitive infrastructure when our primary mode of understanding complex realities becomes reduced to simplified visual snippets that prioritize emotional resonance over factual accuracy.
Literacy in Crisis
We're witnessing what appears to be simultaneous declines in traditional literacy alongside insufficient development of critical digital literacy. Studies show today's students often struggle to evaluate online sources critically or distinguish between factual reporting and opinion. Meanwhile, researchers have identified concerning trends in brain development among heavy digital media users, particularly affecting language areas crucial for comprehension. This has potentially devastating implications for how future generations will process information and form opinions.
Social media literacy researchers have identified several critical competencies for our digital age: navigation, curation, appraisal, comprehension, creation, and interaction. Yet our education systems have been slow to adapt, leaving many vulnerable to manipulation.
From Woodcuts to Web Culture
What strikes me most about Charlotte Kent's analysis is how she traces the evolution of the Dance of Death from wall paintings to woodcuts - the more portable, reproducible technology of the day. The invention of the printing press turned these macabre images into one of the first viral media phenomena, spreading across Europe through mass-produced prints.
In the 1480s, Paris printer Guy Marchant created affordable woodcut versions that made these images accessible beyond church walls, democratizing access to this cultural narrative. Hans Holbein the Younger's famous Dance of Death woodcuts (1523-1526) further transformed the genre, adding elements of social satire and religious reform.
This historical progression mirrors our own transition from centralized mass media to decentralized social platforms, where memes serve similar cultural functions:
Processing collective trauma through simplified visual narratives
Making complex realities emotionally accessible
Providing social commentary that often challenges institutional power
Creating community through shared understanding
The Intelligence Community's Response (this is where things get interesting IMO)
Interestingly, intelligence agencies have begun exploring what's called "memetic warfare" - the strategic use of memes for intelligence and defense purposes. A NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence paper by Jeff Giesea explicitly called for intelligence agencies to develop memetic warfare capabilities, noting that "Trolling, it might be said, is the social media equivalent of guerrilla warfare, and memes are its currency of propaganda."
Military strategists have been exploring these concepts for years. As early as 2006, US Marine Corps Major Michael B. Prosser advocated for establishing a "Meme Warfare Center," and by 2011, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) was funding research on "Military Memetics" as "a subset of neuro-cognitive warfare" focused on how memes could be deployed in the "war of ideas."
A clear example of how this plays out is the North Atlantic Fellas Organization (NAFO), a decentralized online group that counters Russian disinformation about the Ukraine war using cartoon Shiba Inu dog memes (not kidding and not pleased as a Shiba Inu owner). While not officially affiliated with NATO, it has gained support from many government officials, with Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas and Ukraine's Defense Minister even adopting the cartoon dog avatars. What makes NAFO effective is that it doesn't try to counter propaganda with point-by-point rebuttals - instead, it uses humor and absurdity to dismiss disinformation outright. As NAFO co-founder Matt Moores explained, "The moment somebody's replying to a cartoon dog online, you've lost if you work for the government of Russia."
I had to mention: that this memetic appropriation of the Shiba Inu image bears little resemblance to the actual breed - intelligent, dignified hunting dogs with a rich heritage in Japanese culture. The cartoonish representations used in information warfare strip away the breed's true nature, turning it into a simplified symbol. This transformation itself illustrates the reductive power of memes - their ability to flatten complex realities (whether a dog breed or geopolitical situations) into easily shareable, emotionally resonant symbols.
What's striking about intelligence agencies' approach is how they're developing these strategies with an explicit awareness of both the benefits and limitations of memes as communication tools. Unlike many social media users who consume and share memes uncritically, these institutions are approaching them as tactical components in larger strategic frameworks.
This points to a crucial distinction: memes aren't inherently problematic – they're tools. The issue emerges when we lack awareness of their limitations as simplifications of complex realities. Just like AI, no?
The Digital Literacy Crisis
The parallel between medieval visual culture and today's meme landscape reveals both promise and peril. Like the Dance of Death, memes provide a communal framework for processing complexity. Yet there's a crucial difference: medieval people viewed these images within a shared interpretive context, often guided by religious and communal frameworks.
Today's fragmented media environment lacks those shared interpretive structures. Research suggests that our increasing reliance on simplified information formats may be reshaping neural pathways, particularly in developing brains. Studies indicate concerning correlations between heavy digital media use and changes in white matter tracts connecting language processing areas - the very cognitive infrastructure needed for nuanced understanding.
In my earlier piece "Finding Stillness in the AI Era", I explored how this constant barrage of algorithmic content creates a particular kind of anxiety - one that stems from being perpetually overwhelmed with information while simultaneously disconnected from deeper meaning. The solution isn't necessarily less technology, but a more mindful approach to how we engage with it - creating spaces for reflection amidst the algorithmic noise.
The research on "social media literacy" has identified several critical competencies for navigating our digital age: navigation, curation, appraisal, comprehension, creation, and interaction. Yet our education systems have been slow to adapt, leaving many vulnerable to manipulation through what researchers call "echo chambers" and "filter bubbles." These algorithmic echo chambers create environments where, as one study explains, "individuals only encounter information or opinions that reflect and reinforce their own," making them less capable of considering opposing viewpoints. The mechanics are straightforward - content algorithms track engagement metrics and serve users more of what triggers interaction, creating feedback loops that maximize reaction over reflection.
What's particularly concerning is how this affects critical thinking development. When young people lack the tools to "critically analyze relationships between media and audiences, information and power," they become susceptible to simplistic narratives that breed polarization rather than understanding.
But I don't think the answer lies in nostalgia or technophobia. Just as the Dance of Death evolved from church murals to satirical woodcuts to Ingmar Bergman films, our meme culture needs to mature beyond simplistic takes into more sophisticated forms of visual communication.
What Next?
As we navigate this landscape, several promising paths forward emerge:
Educational Approaches: Some educators are already incorporating meme literacy into their curriculum - teaching students not just to consume visual cultural shorthand but to create and critically analyze it. This meta-awareness of how formats shape understanding offers one path forward.
Algorithmic Transparency: Demanding greater transparency from platforms about how their algorithms operate could help users make more informed choices about their information diets.
Intentional Consumption: Just as medieval people had practices for contemplating the Dance of Death imagery within spiritual frameworks, we might develop intentional practices for consuming digital content - setting aside time for deeper reading alongside meme consumption.
Cross-Perspective Exposure: Actively seeking viewpoints from outside our algorithmic bubbles can help maintain cognitive flexibility and reduce polarization.
Social Media Literacy Training: Research suggests that specific training in how to navigate social media environments can significantly improve users' ability to distinguish accurate from misleading information.
The challenge we face isn't just about technology - it's about our relationship with complexity itself. In a world where information volume exceeds anyone's capacity to process it, memes and simplified visual narratives serve an essential cognitive function. The question isn't whether we should use these tools, but how we can develop more sophisticated versions that retain nuance while making complexity manageable.
Perhaps the most important insight from the medieval Dance of Death is that societies find ways to process collective trauma and complexity through visual culture. Rather than resisting this impulse, we might channel it toward more constructive ends by developing visual literacies that acknowledge emotional needs while preserving critical thinking.
What do you think? Are memes helping us process information overload or simplifying us into intellectual complacency? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
This piece was inspired by a transcript of the Art Forum Atelier panel discussion at the Morgan Library, featuring editor-in-chief Tina Ryan, Courtney J. Martin (Robert Rauschenberg Foundation), Saisha Grayson (Smithsonian), artist Raphael Lozano-Hemmer, and critic Charlotte Kent.
Album recommendation of the week: