[close] Transculturalism is about identity, and the modern quest for belonging in these troubled times of conflict and war. Claude Grunitzky and his network of writers and photographers from around the world examine - through essays, analyses, and personal tales - how certain curious, open-minded people manage, through perserverance and affinity, to adapt to new cultures. The basic premise of this optimistic book is that some individuals transcend their initial culture in order to explore, examine, and infiltrate alien cultures. These people are "transculturalists" and their experiences -- as seen in the 2002 Census - show that in the future it will become increasingly difficult to identify and separate people according to previously accepted delineations. In essence, Grunitzky and the book's contributors contend that transculturalism defies race, religion, sexuality, class, and every sort of classification known to sociologists and marketers. Transculturalists lead unusual lives: some people call them heretics. They date and marry inside their gender; they travel on a whim and venture into faraway lands; they dress unconventionally, and customize new dress codes regularly; they live in areas their parents were once barred from, and take jobs previously considered outside of their leagues; they listen to, create, and criticize music they are not supposed to listen to ; they display high levels of creativity in the arts and other progressive disciplines.Additionally, TRUE Agency and TRACE magazine will be organizing a series of symposiums on Transculturalism worldwide starting in the spring of 2004. "Claude Grunitzky says he doesn't mind if he is misunderstood, even if the reason is usually his name. 'I've noticed a lot of people can't figure me out.' he says. 'But once they figure you out, they label you and put you in a box. I like being complex, difficult to understand, because I don't want to be perceived with these stereotypes always associated with black people.' He talks a lot about a transcultural philosophy, a way of navigating many worlds. A French citizen who speaks four languages, he has an American-tinged accent. He calls it mid-Atlantic, from having lived in Togo, Washington, Paris, and London." (The New York Times) [close]