Network of Learning / collaboration.

Part of the principles of MAPP (and BAPP) are networks and collaboration. (These are ideas that carry across the whole course.) We sometimes mention 'the Prisoner's Dilemma' coming from Game Theory. Have a look at http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/playground/pd.html.

In this course part of the idea of networks involves collaboration. But this is also a larger shift in thinking in terms of how we construct what interaction in society should look like or how we construct our Western history.

Darwin offered a world of survival of the fittest which mirrored the Regency and Victorian period of empire building of his lifetime. What if we let go of the *metaphor of fighting that we use in so many descriptions of ideas and replaced it with collaboration.

Below Howard Rheingold explores how we can readjust to see history (and present day) from a metaphor of 'working together' rather than 'survival of the fittest'. I think this is really important because art is often involved in activism that brings people together through making together.

*An interesting book to look at on metaphor is LAKOFF, G. & JOHNSON, M. 1980. Metaphors we live by, Chicago, University of Chicago Press.

Working in a show or part of a cast also rely on cooperation, so as artists we are very familiar with the idea in our professional work but how can we learn from those professional situations of collaboration? How is collaboration a part of your practice?  What ethical considerations does the principle of collaboration raise in a creative process?

https://www.ted.com/talks/howard_rheingold_on_collaboration?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare

To push this idea further: The idea of cooperation is explored in many artists processes. Art activism often uses the idea of making something together as a way to value and highlight community. I feel collaboration has a part in the map of an artists practice. Where is collaboration in your practice, in your inquiry, in your field of work?

How do we explain the value we know of doing this to people who have not experienced what it is like to be a part of a show or performance?  This is also about my interest in how artists can lead the way in other fields through explaining our good practice in our own field.

Also think about: team work is not always collaboration, so what are the principles of collaboration. In this course drawing on Connectivist principles we are seeing the blogs and discussions as acts of collaboration. How are You in the network of learning of the course? Does your experience in the network of the MAPP learning community mirror experiences in your professional practice? Are you bringing assumptions about working together from MAPP to your Practice or the other way around?

Here is a video talk about collaboration and the work of a poet who uses collaboration as part of process. If you asked yourself how to collaborate each time you started a creative process or entered a teaching situation, what interesting ethical considerations does it raise - different for each situation I would think. In this way collaboration could be seen as a principle for learning not just an organising tool. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmQVNE-MbKI

Please comment below to continue the conversation. As always for longer thoughts please post on your blog and leave the link int he comments for people to go to.

Adesola