In his 1936 essay “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction,” Walter Benjamin writes about the enormous impact that mechanization had on art. For a long period of time, before the turning point age of industrialization, art and its value was defined by its authenticity. Through its ritualistic basis of determining what qualified as art and what didn’t, the Renaissance establishes that “pure” art only existed in its original form. This “pure” art manifested itself in original paintings, sculptures, and drawings; such as the painting exhibited here:

                                            

             Heinrich III.

 With the introduction of  mechanical reproduction, the total function of art was revolutionized. With photography and film being infinitely reproducible, and lacking true “authentic” form, the ritualistic practices became outmoded. This shift in value led to a shift in the monetization of artwork; particularly within the realm of film. 


                   Self-Portrait (Hands)                           Running Man

Although Benjamin doesn’t particularly venture into the economic impact of art, reproduction, and film, as a film major I am aware of the immeasurable impact this shift incurred. Through a Renaissance lens, film would have been seen as a commodity of little worth considering its infinite potential for reproducibility. Although the premise of a great film may have been considered original, there was no way to own an original form of the art. However, this grand change in the art world, thanks to industrialization, allowed for an art like film to redefine what it meant to have value. Film, from a business standpoint, would be nothing without its reproducibility. 








Works Cited


Benjamin, Walter, and Michael W. Jennings. “The Work of Art in the Age of Its 

Technological Reproducibility [First Version].” Gray Room, no. 39, 2010, pp. 11–38, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27809424. Accessed 17 Apr. 2022.

Davis, Douglas. “The Work of Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction (An Evolving Thesis: 

1991-1995).” Leonardo, vol. 28, no. 5, 1995, pp. 381–86, https://doi.org/10.2307/1576221. Accessed 17 Apr. 2022.

“Music's Reproducibility and Our Reflected Reality.” Clark University Music Research, Clark 

University Music Research, https://wordpress.clarku.edu/musicresearch/scott/musics-reproducibility-and-our-reflected-reality/. 

Summers, David. “Contrapposto: Style and Meaning in Renaissance Art.” The Art Bulletin, vol. 

59, no. 3, 1977, pp. 336–61, https://doi.org/10.2307/3049668. Accessed 17 Apr. 2022.

Walkiewicz, Alice J. “Art and Labor in the Nineteenth Century.” Art History Teaching 

Resources, 16 Jan. 2016, https://arthistoryteachingresources.org/lessons/art-and-labor-in-the-nineteenth-century/.



Images

Alma Lavenson. Self-Portrait (Hands). https://jstor.org/stable/community.17425062. Center for 

Creative Photography, University of Arizona;Gift of Paul Wahrhaftig. Accessed 17 Apr. 2022.

François Clouet (um 1520 - 1572), Französischer Maler, Hofmaler, Renaissance. Heinrich III. 

https://jstor.org/stable/community.15725470. Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Accessed 17 Apr. 2022.

Gildea, Iain. Running Man. 9 Oct. 2007, https://jstor.org/stable/community.30351729. Accessed 

17 Apr. 2022.


 

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