Abstract
The act of painting a design is a form of agency, and the overall style of that design in part can be conceptualized as a kind of structure. This perspective is used as a basis for analyzing chronological changes in designs on Mimbres Black-on-white pottery (ca. AD 750–1150) from Southwest New Mexico. Specific focus is on a methodology that can be used to detect innovations, that is, the introduction of novel designs that are incorporated into the design corpus and thus transform the structure. The conceptualization of a particular tradition (in this instance, pottery painting) as a form of structure analogous to general structure in Giddens' sense thus provides important insights into the recursive relationship between agency and structure.
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Hegmon, M., Kulow, S. Painting as Agency, Style as Structure: Innovations in Mimbres Pottery Designs From Southwest New Mexico. J Archaeol Method Theory 12, 313–334 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-005-8451-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10816-005-8451-5