The Aura

The Walter Benjamin reading defines the "aura" as "a strange tissue of space and time: the unique apparition of a distance, however near it may be." (104). In other words, the aura is the legend behind the artwork; it involves the context in which the art exists. To better understand, imagine an artwork that has rested at a single site for centuries. It has become part of the local culture. Stories and myths have formed around the work, giving it character. This accumulation of cultural context creates the aura. Benjamin argues that the aura is only awarded to original works. Replicas, however successful in their recreation, will never attain the "unique apparition." I agree that an original work should always be awarded more reverence, but Benjamin throws photography into the "replication" category. At the time of this text's publication, photography was completely film based; a darkroom was required to create any sort of print using a negative. I suppose Benjamin considers photography a replication because the negative is technically the original. (He is correct in this sense.) But, to say that photography cannot have an aura is simply incorrect. There are countless photos that command admiration as an artwork and fit Benjamin's definition of the aura.

Here are a few examples.