Paradigms and Paleoartists: How our Perception of Dinosaurs Forms

Thomas Kuhn in his famous work The Structure of Scientific Revolutions put forth his idea about how science changes. Kuhn thought that science changed by scientific revolutions brought on by an anomaly. After the anomaly, a crisis point would ensue as more scientists would research the anomaly. While in the process of research they would abandon the old paradigm in favor of one that would explain the anomaly. Not all anomalies create a crisis, but can rather result in a paradigm shift. These shifts occur within the old paradigm, and do not led to the formation of a new paradigm. This is evident in the field of dinosaur paleontology, in which several paradigm shifts have occurred throughout its history. The result of these shifts can be seen through the work of artists who sought to portray the view of dinosaurs during their lifetime. It is because of this reason that paleoartistry has played an important role in society’s perception of dinosaurs. In the past, Charles R. Knight, one of the most famous paleoartists, painted dinosaurs in energetic poses which was contrary to the paradigm. Today\u27s paleoartists like Mark Witton, Julius T. Csotonyi, Gregory S. Paul, and Luis V. Rey influence our imaginations about how dinosaurs lived