Week 3: Robotics and Art

Industrialization and mass production revolutionized the world, starting with the printing press and following with Ford’s assembly lines for the automobile. Revolutionary developments have continued throughout history, and it is interesting to observe how society responds to these changes and more specifically, the effects on the artistic process throughout the world. However, as described by Vesna, as mechanization increased, workers began to be treated like they were a part of the machine, and it was now the mechanization of workers as well.

(Ford's assembly line and the mechanization of workers)

After reading the work of Walter Benjamin, I began thinking about the effect of industrialization and mechanization on art. Benjamin states that “even the most perfect reproduction of a work of art is lacking in one element: its presence in time and space, its unique existence at the place where it happens to be”. This quote stood out to me, as it emphasizes that a reproduction of a work of art can never truly be the same as the original piece, yet so much of art today is a reproduction. Mechanical reproduction seems to put an end to the originality and uniqueness of art. In his work “The Work of Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction”, Douglas Davis applies the concepts of Walter Benjamin to a more modern society, discussing how there is not a distinction between original and reproduction in virtually any medium. He touches on how digitization has affected the handmade arts of writing, drawing, and painting, which can be seen in our day-to-day life.

(The spread of art to digital means)

It is interesting to me to think that not only has technology used art, but art has actually directly influenced the creation of new forms of technology. In our society, mechanization has become more advanced and we can consider the importance art has on robotics, a form of mechanization that has become more popular. In Professor Machiko Kusahara’s lecture on Japanese robotics, I found the comparison between the western and eastern perceptions of robots intriguing, with in some cases robots are seen as a threat whereas in others, specifically Japan, robots are seen as friendly helpers. We can see the application of robotics and how intertwined it is with art through many forms of entertainment today, from the movie “Big Hero 6” (which has a distinct robotic character) to Amazon’s Alexa virtual assistant with its many “smart” features.

(Amazon's Alexa, a virtual assistant with "smart" technology)

References:

Benjamin, Walter. "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction." (1936).

“Contemporary Cultural Questions: How Will Technology Continue to Influence Art?” Cultivating Culture, 13 Dec. 2013, www.cultivatingculture.com/2013/10/31/contemporary-cultural-questions-how-will-technology-continue-to-influence-art/.

Davis, Douglas. “The Work of Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction (An Evolving Thesis: 1991-1995).” Leonardo, vol. 28, no. 5, 1995, pp. 381–386. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/1576221.

Ernst, Kurt. “Henry Ford’s Moving Automotive Assembly Line Turns 100.” HemmingsDaily, 7 Oct. 2013, www.hemmings.com/blog/2013/10/07/henry-fords-moving-automotive-assembly-line-turns-100/.

Heathman, Amelia. “Amazon Alexa Can Now Make Playlists for You.” Evening Standard, 15 Mar. 2018, www.standard.co.uk/tech/amazon-alexa-amazon-music-playlists-a3790556.html.

Kusahara, Machiko. “Professor Machiko Kusahara on Japanese Robotics.” YouTube, 14 Apr. 2012, youtu.be/xQZ_sy-mdEU.

Vesna, Victoria. “Robotics pt1.” YouTube, 15 Apr. 2012, youtu.be/cRw9_v6w0ew.