WEEK 3 | ROBOTICS + ART | 🤖

“The technique of reproduction detaches the reproduced object from the domain of tradition. By making many reproductions it substitutes a plurality of copies for a unique existence.” (Benjamin 1). About 80 years ago, Walter Benjamin predicted the growing human fear of the destruction of authenticity, that is the element of uniqueness, that has been traditionally tied to the work of art. As Benjamin warns, humans should attempt to divide the relationship between the creator and the creation, but what happens when the creation reflects and replicates the creator?

Robots vs Humans by Fanny Luor

From the early printing press to current AI-powered assistant technology like Alexa, there has been an advancement in how knowledge is accessed, produced, and distributed. Interestingly, Benjamin’s prediction of the fear of the loss of authenticity is reflected in today’s time with the creation of various programs that are installed with artificial intelligence that specifically make it capable for gadgets to replicate the uniqueness of the human race through the interaction of communication, and the ability to read emotions, tones, and social cues. The replication of uniquely human traits is the fear that drives folk to fear technological advancements such as robots.

As Kapek once said, the idea of metal contraptions replacing humans is feared and deemed an offense to natural life (Vesna). The disproval of the replication of human intelligence is reflected in today’s movies, specifically in I, Robot. As we see in the scene, the human is offended when the robot is able to identify human interactions to the point where he emphasizes trust is “a human thing” and calls the robot “an imitation of life”. Arguably, this offense is fueled by the fear rooted in our psychological distinction between human and object (Berenet). The idea that something so unique as communication between humans can be replicated through industrialization creates a crisis for human society because their own uniqueness could be replaced, thus not making this distinctive trait not unique.

Baymax, a not-so-scary robot

As Kusahara lectured, robots should look friendly, not scary (Kusahara). This is so we may not be intimidated by their abilities. In Japan, robots are embraced yet in the West, robots are seen as job-stealers and the competition (Lufkin). I leave you with this question: How do you feel about seeing human traits be reflected through IA? Why?

Citations 

Benjamin, Walter. “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.” 1935. 

Berent, Iris. “Op-Ed: The Real Reason We're Afraid of Robots.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2020, www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2020-07-26/artificial-intelligence-robots-psychology-fears.

Kusahara, Machiko. "Robots in Japan." Lecture. 12 Apr. 2022,  UCLA, Los Angeles, California. Class lecture.  

Lufkin, Bryan. “What the World Can Learn from Japan's Robots.” BBC Worklife, BBC, 6 Feb. 2020, www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200205-what-the-world-can-learn-from-japans-robots.  

Verdun, Facu. “I, Robot - Human Emotions Scene.” YouTube, YouTube, 25 June 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=siHfHUm3HGE. 

Vesna, Victoria. "Industrialization, Robotics, Kinetic / robotic art." Lecture. 26 Mar. 2012,  UCLA, Los Angeles, California. Class lecture.