The transformation of artistic creation: from Benjamin’s reproduction to AI generation

Abstract

Abstract This article examines the transformative impact of AI-based art generators by extending Walter Benjamin’s arguments on mechanical reproduction to the digital age. While Benjamin examined how mechanical reproduction affected works created with clear human intentionality, AI generated art introduces a fundamentally different dynamic through ‘distributed agency’ across human prompters, algorithmic interpretation mechanisms, and collective training datasets. Through an analysis of four key examples that illustrate different aspects of AI’s influence on artistic practice—generative AI art platforms, the Portrait of Edmond de Belamy , Refik Anadol’s Archive Dreaming , and The 2023 Sony World Photography Awards controversy—the study advances four interconnected arguments: first, that generative AI reconfigures creative agency beyond traditional human-centered models; second, that AI establishes new dialogic relationships between creators, artworks, and audiences; third, that algorithmic generation differs fundamentally from mechanical reproduction by creating novel interpretative expressions rather than duplicating existing works; and fourth, that AI transforms the societal dimensions of artistic production through a dialectical relationship between democratization and proletarianization. By critically extending Benjamin’s framework to address contemporary technological conditions, this study provides theoretical foundations for understanding art in an age of algorithmic creation. The findings reveal how AI both fulfills and challenges Benjamin’s predictions about technological art reproduction while creating new epistemic and sociotechnical configurations that require reconceptualizing traditional notions of artistic authenticity, creative agency, and cultural preservation in an era of increasing algorithmic mediation.

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