So I was listening to stories of indigenous tribes meeting the modern world for the first time, and imagining what it might look like to step out of a jungle with a world view that was as good as alien to our own, and to suddenly be hit by the sights and sounds of our modern electric world. This is art suggesting how a colorful shaman priest becomes pixelated as an expression of our modern state.

Here's how it might go:

Deep in the heart of the world of nature, there lived a shaman named Kukayla. He was known throughout the tribe for his wisdom he brought from communing with the spirits, his powerful healing abilities, and mostly for his striking appearance. He always put concerted effort into creating powerful face paints. His job was to tell stories and to store and dispense wisdom in many forms. His body was always adorned with vibrant colors, painted in intricate patterns that told the stories of his ancestors or gave messages from the spirit world.

One day, Kukayla received a vision from the spirits. They showed him a world beyond their lands, a place where the sky was a hazy gray and the earth was covered with stone. The spirits told him that he must journey to this world and bring back the knowledge he gained to help his people.

Kukayla always followed his spirit guides, for he knew their wisdom was transcendent. He therefore set out on his journey, unsure of what lay ahead, and a touch trepidatious despite his fierce demeanor. He traveled for many days, eventually leaving the lush green and entering a barren brown and gray land.

Now bear in mind, Kukalya was used to stunning sojourns in the strange worlds of the spirit, and to all manner of bizarre creatures and realms. But this was a world in his own, and it was inconceivable. In the distance he saw giant machines that belched smoke and heard the roar of beasts that were not of the natural world.

He finally arrived at a sprawling city. The buildings reached to the sky and cut through clouds like impossible metal fingers, and the streets were filled with people, just like him, rushing frantically to and fro. Kukayla was simply and utterly overwhelmed by the sights and sounds of this new place. He stepped out of his world and into a loud, electric, frenzied explosion of activity, and felt himself in an instant, transformed.

Kukayla's journey had a profound effect on him. He returned to his tribe a radically changed man. He brought with him the experience he gained and shared it with his people, to their endless amazement. The spirits had been right: he had been altered by his experiences into a pixelated priest and in turn, he had transformed his people.

That's the PG version, anyway. 🙂