Week 3: Aura
In 1936, a German philosopher and
cultural critic, named Walter Benjamin wrote an essay entitled, “The Work of
Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”. Benjamin is focused on how modernity’s main principle
is about the masses. During that period mass production was a part of everyday
life and it was something new. Mass communication, mass transportation, mass
media and even mass warfare was taking place. For mass production to happen it comes with
the replication of every step a thousand time if needed. In the first opening paragraph,
Benjamin said, “Mechanical reproduction of a work of art, however, represent
something new.” Art was changing. It was changing by the way it was being made,
also by how people were also seeing art. When art is reproduced it loses touch
with what the original piece was trying to communicate. It no longer holds the
vaule of time and space; the authenticity is lost. In better terms, “ One might
subsume that eliminated element in the terms “aura” and go on to say: that
which wither in the age if mechanical reproduction is the aura of the work”(Benjamin
1996,4).
An exploration of what Benjamin was
talking about can best be seen in the reproduction of Queen Elizabeth the second’s
portrait. Arnold Machin, a British sculptor,
did a clay sculptor of Queen Elizabeth the second and it was used as the
postage stamp model. “Since then, the Royal Mail has printed some 220 billion
stamps bearing copies of Machin’s artwork” (Cain). The image is seen repeatedly by the residence of
the British people. The image itself no longer holds the vaule that it is artwork.
It is seen by the masses has just a stamp nothing more. The portrait of Queen
Elizabeth does not hold its place through time either because it has not been
replaced. And continues to be used for the purpose of a stamp for the portrait
of the queen has stayed the same since 1967.
However, the portrait can seen as more than just a stamp too. For its aura
has changed to not represent the queen in her likeness in artwork but to represent
the entire of Britain. When artwork is reproduced it is no longer about the original
piece it is about what the copies are being used for.
Benjamin, Walter, Hannah Arendt, and Harry Zohn. 1969. Illuminations. New York: Schocken Books.
Cain, Abigail. “This Is the Most Reproduced Artwork of All Time,” July 14, 2016. https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-this-is-the-most-reproduced-artwork-of-all-time.
This is an interesting reproduction of artwork for me to read about. Just looking at the stamp makes me think the original sculpture is magnificent, and I would love to see it. I would tend to believe that the original artwork didn’t lose its aura, but rather the stamps have no aura outside the realm of whatever aura a stamp could possibly hold. Was the original sculpture made of porcelain? A bas-relief or a life-like and size? I enjoyed reading your post, however, I noticed a few grammatical errors or typos in the last paragraph. A couple of sentences confused me a little, but also I am tired, so that could be the main reason. Thanks for sharing! I’m going to look up a photo of the original sculpture now.
ReplyDeleteThank you Fran,
ReplyDeleteThe original Portrait done by Arnold Machin, is a bas- relief done as a plaster cast. I could not find the size of the plaster cast. In my last paragraph the stamps are more then just a stamp when it comes to the United Kingdom. The stamps represent the Royal Mail system in Britain. It is no longer about the likeness of the Queen.
I agree that it was interesting in the way that this has come about but I do believe it's still art. To common people a stamp means nothing to them but think of stamp collectors. They might see this as a nice centerpiece to their collection or it can inspire them to look into the original work. I'm not a stamp collector by any means but I am a comic collector and know there's reproductions of famous comics as stamps. I don't think these tarnish the original piece but celebrates it. I also agree with the grammatical and spelling errors, this could be a lot better with just a bit of proofreading.
ReplyDelete