Nowadays, video and mass media is no longer the carrier of mechanical reproduction. They smash the previous physical experience of people, and then revitalise them, to make modern expression of Scientism to be invalid. Meanwhile, contemporary thoughts still pin their hope onto “red” or “blue” modernism, to make a critical judgment about contemporary society.

Before an exhibition in 2014, Shao Yi had a discussion with young scholar Zhang Wei through annotating the excerpts of Benjamin’s writing “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”. Then he made silk printing on the mirror glasses and smashes them in the exhibition space. By using the glass as a metaphor, Shao Yi presented the violence in peaceful daily relationships between flesh and object, body and object, so that to compel the original feeling between human and object.

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To an ever greater degree the work of art reproduced becomes the work of art designed for reproducibility. From a photographic negative, for example, one can make any number of prints, to ask for the “authentic” print makes no sense. But the instant the criterion of authenticity ceases to be applicable to artistic production; the total function of art is reversed. Instead of being based on ritual, it begins to be based on another practice – politics.

Note 对可复制性艺术品的复制: Benjamin: Retain the art/Aura
Contemporary: Create art/Aura
Note 原真性标准: How to know it?
Note政治的: Ritual is one kind of politics.