In Walter Benjamin’s essay “The Work in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”, he introduces the ideology of artistic forms such as paintings losing their aura. Originality of aura seems to be manipulated with the invention of technology such as film and cameras. Creating variations of perspective manipulates the human ideology of aesthetics by creating false introspection between the object and the eye of the beholder through film and pictures. An actor is only seen from the point of view of the camera. The actor himself is manipulated by the “camera” being his director. He also introduces that all forms of art can be reproducible, and that men can imitate any kind of artifact. Even though credibility of such authenticity is being changed, Benjamin agrees that “mechanical reproduction of work of art, however, represents something new”, but fears that the mass accelerated progression of aesthetic slowly loses its uniqueness. It loses its originality because people do not process that it was one a master piece. They are fooled by the reproduction that technology has created. He believed that it would manipulate the future to lose the true value of art. Human perception through history explains how so by capturing human satisfaction through popularity of technology from the lithograph to photography. Mass reproduction of art forms advanced swiftly throughout the centuries, which replaced authenticity of true aura with mystification.
In Mark Poster’s essay “The Aesthetics of Distracting Media”, he introduces the idea that the transformation of art through technology is not an act of manipulating perspective, but rather is a progression for reinforcing completeness of possibilities through new opportunities. He introduces the aesthetics of art by revealing his perspective, undetermined art. His ideology accepts the counterintuitive awareness of reproduction, which relies heavily on the work produced by technology which manipulates time; not an art form which was formed by a determined mastermind at a specific moment which concentrates on communication for essence of true introspection. Even though Poster’s ideology seems rational and is functionally understandable, his published work does not evaluate the criteria in which experiences of collective work enhances extraordinary differences from one person to another. Instead he attains the belief that progression of technology impacts all of society at once with great progressivism, and uses this analysis to create a purpose to make technology a necessary component to understand human understanding of aesthetic. Even though Poster explains that “art is not a delimited object but an undetermined space in which subject and object, human and machine, body and mind, space and time all receive new cultural forms”, he does not give credibility of the aesthetic being created by originality of aura from an art form. The author points out the problems he found in Walter Benjamin’s essay. He argues that art requires technology that takes time. Mark Poster does not think that the reproduction of paintings makes the original painting lose its aura, but he sees the reproduction as a way of building up. He argues that human sense requires new aesthetic theory, but the new art form does not initially explain its objective to interact such proposition to society.
In John Berger’s video Ways of Seeing, he provides how technology tries to institutionalize aesthetics by explaining how it is possible for media to manipulate art meaning. Berger explains and clarifies how the distinction of the connection of art is being limited for the viewer by media intentionally for marketing purposes. The viewer can be distracted by the art that is in their house if there are other things around it. The perception of art through media produces human popularity behavior that creates a blissful connection, which intensifies mystification as reality. It is true that paintings are still and silent, but the message obtained by such source can transform creativity of art into power that seeks domination over the majority of society. Even though the existence of power in art is obtainable, describing true aesthetic seems to be uncertain of its full potential. In the video, John Berger is standing in front of a painting done by Leonardo da Vinci. The authentic painting is displayed in the National Gallery. He talks about how although the viewers of the video can see the authentic painting through the screen; we still are not seeing the actual painting. Also, he states that since these paintings can be reproducible, the paintings have lost some meaning behind them. With the use of camera movement on a painting, it can go from a shot of the whole painting to a face on the painting. Appreciating the true meaning of are can be influenced by your surroundings. If you are watching a pumped up video then switch to a painting you can not grasp what the painting is supposed to make you feel. A painting can very moving when it is portrayed in complete silence. They were meant to be experienced in silence with gives a dramatic feeling. Knowing about an artist’s background can affect what you see in an art piece. Music can also change the meaning of an art dramatically. Because of the movement that is being done by the camera, the meaning behind the original painting has been lost. Walter Benjamin states, “The presence of the original is the prerequisite to the concept of authenticity.”
In Walter Benjamin’s essay, pictures lose their aura because of mass production. In the video of “Ways of Seeing” by John Berger, it is described that the image changes its meaning by its surroundings. Both the article and the video describe how an image is not the same when it has been mass produced, and instead, changes its meaning. The difference in the article and the video is that in John’s Berger video, images that are mass-produced are better known and people are more familiar with it. Also, in the video, John Berger states that images that have been mass reproduced can change its meaning because of different situations such as environment and other things while in Walter Benjamin’s article he states that when an image is mass reproduced it loses it aura and its complete meaning. Both of these articles have very similarities but in a way they counter say each other.
In John Berger’s video Ways of Seeing, he provides how technology tries to institutionalize aesthetics by explaining how it is possible for media to manipulate art meaning. Berger explains and clarifies how the distinction of the connection of art is being limited for the viewer by media intentionally for marketing purposes. The viewer can be distracted by the art that is in their house if there are other things around it. The perception of art through media produces human popularity behavior that creates a blissful connection, which intensifies mystification as reality. It is true that paintings are still and silent, but the message obtained by such source can transform creativity of art into power that seeks domination over the majority of society. Even though the existence of power in art is obtainable, describing true aesthetic seems to be uncertain of its full potential. In the video, John Berger is standing in front of a painting done by Leonardo da Vinci. The authentic painting is displayed in the National Gallery. He talks about how although the viewers of the video can see the authentic painting through the screen; we still are not seeing the actual painting. Also, he states that since these paintings can be reproducible, the paintings have lost some meaning behind them. With the use of camera movement on a painting, it can go from a shot of the whole painting to a face on the painting. Appreciating the true meaning of are can be influenced by your surroundings. If you are watching a pumped up video then switch to a painting you can not grasp what the painting is supposed to make you feel. A painting can very moving when it is portrayed in complete silence. They were meant to be experienced in silence with gives a dramatic feeling. Knowing about an artist’s background can affect what you see in an art piece. Music can also change the meaning of an art dramatically. Because of the movement that is being done by the camera, the meaning behind the original painting has been lost. Walter Benjamin states, “The presence of the original is the prerequisite to the concept of authenticity.”
In Walter Benjamin’s essay, pictures lose their aura because of mass production. In the video of “Ways of Seeing” by John Berger, it is described that the image changes its meaning by its surroundings. Both the article and the video describe how an image is not the same when it has been mass produced, and instead, changes its meaning. The difference in the article and the video is that in John’s Berger video, images that are mass-produced are better known and people are more familiar with it. Also, in the video, John Berger states that images that have been mass reproduced can change its meaning because of different situations such as environment and other things while in Walter Benjamin’s article he states that when an image is mass reproduced it loses it aura and its complete meaning. Both of these articles have very similarities but in a way they counter say each other.
Nikita Zaman, Kristen Santos, Raul Leal, and Pedro Jimenez are all students at California State University of Northridge, and their group is called the Genies.