The Wave was written to answer a question the author often asked: You say that we are on the cusp of a paradigm shift, a radical change in worldview that will thrust art and culture onto center stage. What does that mean? How will the world be different? The Wave is speculative fiction. In 2023, a young journalist, Rebecca Price, writes a series of articles describing an emergent cultural change that has been gathering force over the previous decade (even longer, some of her informants say). She draws on a range of examples unfolding in New York City, where she lives. "The Wave," her name for the Zeitgeist-the rising spirit of the times-catches on, entering common usage. In 2033, she is asked by an editor to revisit her findings and report again. The text includes notes to her editor, excerpts from the 2023 series, and new material she writes in 2033. Van Jones says "If we're going to end this fiscal madness and start rebuilding America, we're going to have to get creative! We need a tsunami of music, film, poetry and art. The Wave is about changing the story to change the world. Buy it, read it, share it!" The Wave was published simultaneously with a nonfiction work on art's public purpose, The Culture of Possibility: Art, Artists & The Future.
