After reading Benjamin's article I
found his point on how the mechanical reproduction of artwork robs it of its
creativity very interesting. As an artist, I understand the immediate and
personal connection with a piece of work after creating it. The connection you
feel when seeing a painting in real life is very unique to the viewer verse
seeing a reproduced photographic image online. Benjamin describes it as the
art's "aura" to explain the originality of the work created by the
artist and of the artwork. He claims that it separates it in time and space.
Reproducing the work separates creation from the creator and takes away its
originality. It strips its quality away, for example when you see an artist
live verses a recording. Benjamin argues that its authenticity is lost. The
audiences of reproducible art, in movies for example, do not have a complete or
authentic relationship with it. I think the production of films hides things
from the viewer and fogs the viewer’s vision of reality. I would have to agree
with Benjamin's point. There is something lost with the advancement in
technology that makes reproduction so quick easy and viral that may strip the
artist and work of art of its "aura". I think that Benjamin's
argument is very convincing. I think it is seen today in music and the
reproduction of it. A live concert experience is very different than listening
to the same band on your Spotify playlist. I think that something is lost when
you hear a recording of the song verse hearing it in the moment. Benjamin makes
an interesting point stating that the “Public is an examiner, but an
absent-minded one”. In a sense, I think that we absent-mindedly absorb the
media by subjecting ourselves to it than letting the art absorb us. I think our
society now fails to understand the beauty and splendor in the simplicity of
things.
I agree that the reproduction of art means that it loses something. But we live in a world in which very little is original. Baudrillard talks about simulacra -- the simulations of things that were never real to begin with (think Disneyworld). And, what is most interesting, is that everything is constantly trying to establish an aura of authenticity, even if there is nothing "authentic" about it. You might think about Jimmy Johns trying to seem like a local sandwich shop. Of course, Jimmy Johns isn't what most people would call art (although their sandwiches are delicious), but it is indicative of a culture that does not value authenticity and a close relationship with the creation.
ReplyDelete