Mechanical reproduction shifts art’s basis from ritual to politics.

Evidence

Thus the end of “auratic” art in the era of mass reproduction meant not merely the loss of the artistic correspondances, but also the end of Erfahrung (experience rooted in tradition). It was this aspect of the cultural crisis of modern society with which Benjamin’s colleagues at the Institut were in agreement. They also tended to accept the conclusion he drew from the loss of aura: “The instant the criterion of authenticity ceases to be applicable to artistic production, the total function of art is reversed. Instead of being based on ritual, it begins to be based on another practice - politics.” 40, With the advent of mechanical reproduction, the cult value of an art work was replaced by its exhibition value. The best example of this, Benjamin asserted, was the film. — Martin Jay, The Dialectical Imagination, 629

Categorization

• XREF: Directly relevant to the reader’s ‘Grafting & Growth’ article interest in how technologies repurpose cultural objects. — connects to: Avant-garde art depends on concrete political conditions, not just aesthetic logic — Alex Callinicos, Against Postmodernism: A Marxist…, 243; Political denunciation replaced aesthetic novelty as culture’s primary refresh mechanism. — W. David Marx, Blank Space: A Cultural History of the…, 473; Mechanical reproduction works by reducing artworks in size so people can command them — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School: Its History,…, 844

Broader Connections

• Political denunciation replaced aesthetic novelty as culture’s primary refresh mechanism. #expands (0.78) — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 473