Art, Aura, and the Work of Walter Benjamin

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at the effect that the printing press had in the spread of art and culture through the eyes of Walter Benjamin in Samuel Weber's essay, "Art, Aura and the Work of Walter Benjamin." Whereas Benjamin felt that mass reproduction was bad for the art world, he argues that the invention of the printing press allowed books to be read all over the world thereby changing the uniqueness of each painting. This paper also takes a look at the Mona Lisa, and explains that the ability to reproduce it is a positive thing, that, even though it's "aura," is no longer unique, many more people are now able to experience art.

From the Paper:

"With the invention of the printing press, however, books could be manufactured quickly and cheaply, and were available to great number of people. Two people living hundreds of miles apart could read the same book and find the same words, the same illustrations on the same page. However, the printing press also took something away from books the originality and artistry that the monks had poured into each unique volume. Walter Benjamin would say that the aura of the monks volumes was withering away, while the aura of the mass reproduced books was flourishing."

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