Copy/culture

Understanding China's "copying problem" entails thinking beyond conventional wisdom and clichés. Not to do so would be to incorrectly view culture as static, China as peculiarly idiosyncratic, and authenticity as a nonnegotiable concept. In fact, China's copying culture may harbour the seeds of innovation. Aric Chen is an independent design curator and publicist. He is also the creative director of Beijing Design Week 2011.