Explaining the Concept of Authentication in Traditional Arts in Contrast of Mechanical Reproduction

Abstract :
The concept of authenticity in artistic works has attracted the attention of many philosophers and theorists throughout history, from Plato to the postmodern era, and especially traditionalists. Among them, the theorists of the Frankfurt School have focused particularly on this concept. One of the members of this intellectual field is Walter Benjamin, who extensively addresses the concept of authenticity in his famous article “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”. In discussions related to traditional arts, the views of traditionalists have always been of interest, and the concept of authenticity is particularly important among them. Generally, these theorists believe that authenticity is one of the fundamental components of traditional arts, and in examining and expanding on it, one can understand the relationship of other components and characteristics of traditional arts with authenticity. On the other hand, one of the challenging issues of the present era is the existential nature of the concept of authenticity in the face of mechanical reproduction and the emergence of the phenomenon of de-authentication in artistic works. Although the technology of reproduction has been present in various eras with different qualities, its influence has brought about variations in the principles of traditional arts in the present age. Consequently, a particular interpretation of the components of traditional arts, including the concept of authenticity, is observed today, and Benjamin’s writings have focused on the issue of de-authentication in artistic works. In Benjamin’s view, while referring to the characteristics of traditional art forms, direct references have been made to the decline and destruction of artistic components in the age of mechanical reproduction. The analysis and explication of the concept of authenticity in the views of Benjamin and traditionalists can be formulated on this basis.