Comments on Gregory Currie’s ‘Art as the Manifestation of Agency’

Gregory Currie’s claim that art manifests artists’ skilful activity is given sympathetic examination. The scope of the claim is considered, as well as the sense in which it invokes a personal connection to the artist. Currie’s information-focused account of the value of manifestation profiles is extended to encompass engagement with art that may not share information bearing accepted value. The significance of sheer connection to the object worked on by the artist is explored, with reference to Benjaminian aura and pressing Currie’s comparison of humanly and mechanically made copies.