Comments on: Originality? Now there’s a novel idea. http://www.marcuswestbury.net/2010/06/16/originality-now-theres-a-novel-idea/ my life. on the internets. Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:10:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: john walker http://www.marcuswestbury.net/2010/06/16/originality-now-theres-a-novel-idea/comment-page-1/#comment-1333 john walker Wed, 16 Jun 2010 02:44:22 +0000 http://www.marcuswestbury.net/?p=961#comment-1333 There is a sort of paradox about originality. The theory of the origin of all 'originality' is called 'Darwin's theory of the Origin of the Species' :- Error prone copying when combined with selection pressure (survival of the fittest) is the engine of all forms of evolution. Hofstadter was right when he said that 'variations on a theme' is the basis of all innovation. 'Appropriation' is quoting- it is not re-producing; Cultural evolution is is what happens when the quotation marks are striped off and thus the 'quote' becomes once again, a set of instructions ,an action- a movement of mind. Hence the paradox without copying there is no Meta (change )- there is only Stasis. Modern art education is pretty poor because it combines an almost total lack of a meta-understanding of the complex , highly recursive, nature of symbolic systems of representation With ignorance or even open hostility to wide-ranging & deep knowledge as the essential basis for all good teaching. There is a sort of paradox about originality. The theory of the origin of all ‘originality’ is called ‘Darwin’s theory of the Origin of the Species’ :- Error prone copying when combined with selection pressure (survival of the fittest) is the engine of all forms of evolution.
Hofstadter was right when he said that ‘variations on a theme’ is the basis of all innovation.
‘Appropriation’ is quoting- it is not re-producing; Cultural evolution is is what happens when the quotation marks are striped off and thus the ‘quote’ becomes once again, a set of instructions ,an action- a movement of mind. Hence the paradox without copying there is no Meta (change )- there is only Stasis.

Modern art education is pretty poor because it combines an almost total lack of a meta-understanding of the complex , highly recursive, nature of symbolic systems of representation With ignorance or even open hostility to wide-ranging & deep knowledge as the essential basis for all good teaching.

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