Culture of the Confederated Peoples

The culture of the Confederated Peoples has been heavily influenced by the different heritage groups which make up the Confederal people but a distinctive national culture with strong regional variations does exist. Traditionally, the Confederated Peoples has not been considered a major cultural innovator with most Confederals either working within already developed traditions or following trends set in cultural leaders like Xirnium or Amestria. Although they are not generally viewed as trendsetters, Pantocratoria and Knootoss also have some notable influence on Confederal culture.

Culturally speaking, the Confederated Peoples is generally known for its multiculturalism, its world-class figure skating and its literature. Philosophy, a popular discipline in the Confederated Peoples, is also sometimes considered a cultural as well as an academic strong-point.

Strong regionalism in the Confederated Peoples makes it difficult to speak of a homogenous Confederal culture. Confederals instead prefer to think of their culture as a coming together of different traditions into a cultural unity greater than the sum of its parts. Sceptics instead think that the Confederated Peoples is simply culturally fragmented.

Media

Newspapers have a strong regional character, especially those printed in languages other than English. Some newspapers also have a politically partisan character, either explicit or implicit. The ''New Amsterdam Bugle'' is generally considered the newspaper of record and purports to be a national, multicultural, nonpartisan paper, although some dispute this. It is printed in English, Spanish, French, Chinese, Arabic and Hindi.

Television also plays an important role with the Confederal Broadcast Network being the largest network. However, there is a great diversity of television stations in the Confederated Peoples including both local and national stations. Foreign stations such as PINA or CanalDeux are also available. At least a few local television stations broadcast in almost every major language used in the nation. However, most television is in English and the most popular programs are broadcast nationally, creating a common cultural reference point.

The Confederated Peoples possesses an influential center for its national film industry in Caer Gawen, Shieldcrest. Caer Gawen's dominance of the cinema is such that the term "Caer Gawen" is normally used simply to refer to the film industry, excluding some independent film producers. Caer Gawen is largely influenced by its location in Shieldcrest and by the fact that most Shieldcresters are of Welsh heritage. This is especially evident in a number of major films portraying Arthurian romances and idealized Welsh histories. However, it is also evident in more subtle ways in films with more contemporary subjects, especially if one understands the unique history of the Welsh heritage group in the Confederated Peoples.

Folk arts

Folk arts in the Confederated Peoples are as diverse as the population and can take the form of music, dance, poetry, wood carving, embroidery, puppetry, sculpture, pottery, masks, certain forms of opera and the creation of assorated other traditional ritual objects, toys, garments and other items. Because of the sheer diversity of folk arts practiced in the Confederated Peoples, it would be impossible to amply catalogue them all here. However, folk arts in the Confederated Peoples can usually be divided into four broad categories.

The first category is that of traditional art. It refers to all sorts of home-made items used by the various cultural groups in the Confederated Peoples, especially indigenous cultures, in their day-to-day lives. These items are normally not viewed as art by their creators but are instead viewed as religious or merely practical creations. They only become art when obtained by outsiders who normally value them not only for their beauty but for the cultural context which gave birth to them.

The second category is that of self-conscious traditional art. Items of self-conscious traditional art are usually identical or near identical to items of traditional art. However, the difference lies in the context of their creation. Self-conscious traditional art is normally created by someone raised in the culture in which the traditional art originated but who lives a more modern lifestyle and reproduces traditional cultural artifacts as art rather than for their traditional purposes.

The third category is that of contemporary folk art. This is art drawing heavily from the folk customs of one or more cultures and self-consciously avoiding the charactetistics of high art to produce a 'folksy' feel. This is often done to create a down-to-earth, populist tone to politically or socially inspired art although it can often be done purely for entertainment. Contemporary folk art often contains elements of popular culture and references to modern life. Despite the old fashioned feel it often creates, it arises from a contemporary cultural context.

The fourth category is outsider folk art. This normally refers to art which doesn't draw from artistic training or from an established cultural tradition but instead finds its own way through improvisation and experimentation. While a few outsider artists have become very popular, it has produced more failures than sucesses.

Architecture

The architecture of the Confederated Peoples is as diverse as its society and includes works from many different times and cultures. Architectural styles evidenced in parts of the Confederated Peoples include, but are not limited to, Pantobyzantine, Neo-heroic, gothic, baroque, post-modern, classical, neo-classical, Byzantine, Tudor, Spanish Colonial, Elizabethan, Jungenstil, Amsterdam School, Art Deco, metabolist and blobitecture. Much modern trends in architecture are heavily influenced by the work of Xirniumite architects although more traditional forms remain popular for state buildings.

The most impressive and most unique work of architecture in the Confederated Peoples is the Marble City, the several mile wide working center of government for the Grand Duchy of Tarana which is expertly carved out of one giant block of marble. The city is kept rigorously clean and creates a reflective, bright surface which many consider to be a bit overwhelming.

Visual arts

The Confederated Peoples has few world famous visual artists but it does have musuems and galleries well stocked with works of art. Sculptures and painting are often used to decorate public places, places of business and private homes. Painting, in particular, is heavily influenced by Amestria. However, like in most other areas, visual arts in the Confederated Peoples are extremely diverse.