Blog 01

This blog is about a short reflection of my practice after reading the article ‘The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction ‘ .

The article ‘The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction’ was written by Walter Benjamin in 1935. This article explained the role of technical duplication in shaping the aesthetic experience. However, the duplication also devalues the aura of art, which refers to the uniqueness of the artwork. Meanwhile, the author listed the important shifts and effects brought by photography and film on the audiences’ aesthetic experience. Through the reflection on the alienation of political aesthetics, the author thought about the disturbing social and political influence that artworks may bring in the era of mechanical reproduction.

I think the content of this article is connected to my practice. Reproduction such as photography makes the artwork walk out of its original environment and can be spread on a large scale, which narrows the gap between people and beauty. People can enjoy a certain famous painting in a gallery in any place in the world. I only need to search the name of a certain painting on my desktop, then I can enjoy it over and over again. The exploration of art and the interpretation of beauty by the predecessors may bring me inspiration or new thinking and encourage me to re-create to a certain extent. The reproduction of artworks provides convenience and greatly expands the possibility of connecting the artwork itself with other things.