“If Postmodernism is the cultural logic of late capitalism, then Instagram is its apogee, a place where trends go to die, only to be reborn moments later. On platforms like Pinterest, once-rare images of over-designed loft spaces featuring cantilever chairs and low-slung leather sofas are scanned, uploaded, and funneled into Tumblr blogs and Instagram mood-board accounts like [@__dreamspaces](/user/profile/__dreamspaces) , [@decorhardcore](/user/profile/decorhardcore) , and [@casacalle_](/user/profile/casacalle_) . In turn, these online curators create new desires for old aesthetics by turning reference photos into vessels for boosting engagement. Such accounts become producers, or rather, regurgitators of culture — inspiring consumers to mimic what they see online in their own homes as a means to earn likes.”

So what does this mean for design? Whether we like it or not, we’re stuck in a Postmodern cycle of boom and bust trends dictated by whichever media hold the most influence over how information is disseminated online. But this doesn’t mean that tastemakers are totally obsolete. While we were bickering over art objects on Instagram, the real gatekeepers of the design world were busy collecting craft-focused pieces that spoke to the issues of the Anthropocene in a way that popular Postmodern aesthetics cannot.