The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction

"The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" (German: Das Kunstwerk im Zeitalter seiner technischen Reproduzierbarkeit; 1935), by Walter Benjamin, is an essay of cultural criticism which proposes and explains that mechanical reproduction devalues the aura (uniqueness) of a work of art, and that in the age of mechanical reproduction and the absence of traditional and ritualistic values, the production of art would be inherently based upon the praxis of politics. The essay was written during the Nazi régime (1933–1945) in Germany.

Source: Wikipedia — The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction (CC BY-SA 4.0)