Douglas Coupland show covers Anything and Everything

Not happy that Birdman took home Oscars top prize?

Canadian artist and author Douglas Coupland thinks he knows why a movie about an aging actor was named best picture at Sundays 2015 Academy Awards. In a nutshell: blame our hyper-connected world.

There is a real nostalgia for continuity or biological time, he said, pointing out that Boyhood, this years other main Oscar contender, was also about the passage of time.

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Coupland, who himself is now 53, has made a career of tapping into the current trends and moods underlying our culture. The Order of Canada recipient first shot to fame by popularizing the term Generation X 24 years ago.

Today, Coupland is still mining the zeitgeist. He has a brand new book, The Age of Earthquakes, which he describes as a "guidebook for the modern condition." Heis even planning a collaboration with technology behemoth Google, although hes keeping those details under wraps.

"We cant announce it until April," he said.

Were actually in not a bad place ... You look back after 10, 15, 20 years and you know what, [you realize] this is actually pretty good. Douglas Coupland

Walking through his current exhibit Everywhere is Anywhere is Anything is Everything at Torontos Royal Ontario Museum, Coupland is clearly focused on a topic that seems more prevalent than ever: how people function in an increasingly hyper-connected, caffeinated world where theres little time to adapt to change.

"I'm actually starting to forget my pre-internet brain," Coupland said. "It's not like I'm super productive, but I've missed those quiet spots and I think a lot of people maybe do."

Its not like technologys going to take a holiday for a year or two and we can all just have a break, Coupland said. Were just sort of locked into this roller coaster ride now.

Talking to Coupland is a bit of a roller coaster too. In a wide-ranging interview, he touches on privacy, the environment, Facebook, China, Marshall McLuhan, the human brain, 9-11 and dead bees.

Yes, dead bees.

Oh theyre sprinkled here and there, Coupland said, pointing to one of his art installations, a dense cityscape littered with environmental woes. Theres a little pile of them there, being lifted in by a crane.

At first blush, Couplands work might sound pretty glum. But the quirky, colourful exhibits hint at an underlying optimism.

Oh were actually in not a bad place, Coupland said. You look back after 10, 15, 20 years and you know what, [you realize] this is actually pretty good.

You can watch Wendy Mesleys full interview with Douglas Coupland on The National on Friday night at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT).