Robotics + Art

          It is no doubt that the rise of industrialization had a huge impact on art. It began the trend away from small scale manufacturing towards mass production, which revolutionized the way people saw and described the world they live in. It ushered a quick production of items that were not commonly available or accessible and the rapid exchange of knowledge. The era of mass communication began which altered society as the circulation of information and ideas transcended borders and captured masses.  

Ford's assembly line that reduced magneto assembly time from 15 minutes to 5 minute and a required workforce from 24 to 19.

          However, this fast moving mechanization of production and automation was not so accepting by some. The assembly line workers of Ford were compared to as parts of a machine and can easily be replaced by robots. As explained by Machiko Kusahara, the Industrial Revolution demonstrated how robots could take over power from human beings and how society is equally intrigued yet fearful of these robots. I even believe that in the next hundred or so years, robots could take over most of human jobs. But, I don't necessarily think it is a bad thing because they would serve to aid us rather than harm us since after all, robots do no possess human emotions.

In the Tesla factory in Fremont, CA, a robot is capable of doing up to four functions.

          Additionally, in the words of Walter Benjamin “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 happen to be.” He argues that though the original artwork is independent of its copy, the mere replication of the original takes away from it. Though I agree that mechanical reproduction dismantles the uniqueness or originality in a work of art, technology has made possible the spread of these arts, which in turn can influence new ideas, throughout the world. Without this reproduction of art, we would have never understood or saw the world as we do today. 

Works Cited

Benjamin, Walter. The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. London: Penguin, 2008. Print.

Ford, Henry. “Magneto Assembly Line” The Henry Ford. Online. 20 October 2013 <http://media.caranddriver.com/images/media/51/fords-assembly-line-turns-100-02-magneto-assembly-photo-513772-s-original.jpg>

Kusahara, Machiko “Robotics MachikoKusahara 1” Youtube. 14 April 2012. Web. 20 October 2013 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQZ_sy-mdEU>

Sakuma, Paul. “Skilled Work, Without the Worker” 2012. Associated Press. Online. 20 October 2013 <http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/08/19/business/JP-ROBOT-1/JP-ROBOT-1-articleLarge.jpg>

Vesna, Victoria. “Robotics pt1” Youtube. 15 April 2012. Web. 20 October 2013. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRw9_v6w0ew>