The Work of Art in the Age of Multiverse Meme Generativity

Abstract

This article adapts Walter Benjamin’s theory of technological reproducibility to examine how generative AI transforms art. Through analysis of a range of works of art and online popular culture, the article theorizes the aesthetics of generative AI. From the characteristic glitches and recurrent formats, the aesthetics are conceived as muddled confusions of parts, attempts at reinserting what Benjamin terms aura, and as surrealist assemblages of characters, styles and worlds. In Benjamin’s conception, popular culture becomes our collective imaginary, which today feeds into a memetic visual conversation of imitation and variation. AI points toward an age of multiverses where characteristics, current events and cultural artifacts blend together to achieve success in social network attention economies. Following Benjamin, the article examines the politics of these transformative media technologies. More than a risk to the livelihood of artists and deep-faked disinformation, this article argues for the radical potential in freeing visual culture from the property rights of corporations.