Pain and Death to Everyone
Just watched a thirty-minute documentary presented by the sculptor Anthony Gormley about the Aztec exhibition at the Royal Academy in London. The awesome sculptures, artifacts and codices on show were placed before us without fanfare. Gormley said that he was fascinated by the way the Aztecs had placed two central human experiences, pain and death, at the centre of their ritual culture, rather than repressing it to the degree that modern western culture has.
This sort of memorable, thought-provoking programme appears on Channel 5 surprisingly often. As the credits rolled, however, a jaunty voiceover told us not to miss next two programmes: Britain?s Worst Driver and James Bond's Cars. Later in the evening, the same channel offers Diana's Top Ten ? "a portrait of the princess as reflected through her record collection" - and the movie Operation Delta Force 5: Random Fire.
What did that guy say about pain and death?
