Week 3- Robotics and Art



        This idea of the combination between robotics and art is a multifaceted concept with multiple nuances, but in essence can be boiled down to a single idea. Art affects the advancement of robotic technology, and robotics in turn effect the creations of art work. It’s possible that no one understood this better than Walter Benjamin, who wrote The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction in 1936.  In it, one of his comments is that “Mechanical reproduction of art changes the reaction of the masses toward art”. 
Essentially, it seems as if he is describing how the robotics of our generation can transform the way we as a society see art. It is no longer just a pretty and enjoyable thing to look at, but people can see the function and the purpose in it more clearly. This allows for a greater understanding of how these two fields are intertwined rather than separate.
 A perfect example of this would be in military robotics. In a book by PW Singer, he explains the advancement of military robotics, including how they are formed as shaped. 

On the top, there is a 1900's Polish painting of a possible
combat robot. Below, there is a rendering of a future
US Department of Defense project.
One of his main examples was that artistic depictions of robots of the future have trended people’s desires towards certain shapes in their robots. For example, many companies are working on forming humanoid, or human shaped robots, rather than those that seem foreign. A big part of this, as Singer describes, was the result of thousands of pieces of artwork displayed throughout the 90’s and early 2000’s. So while many may see the fields as separate, it is clear to anyone who looks that art and robotics are much more closely tied than maybe people believe.
Every day, universities and companies
are woking to make robots
more lifelike




Works Cited:

Benjamin, Walter. "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction." Stardom and Celebrity: A Reader (n.d.): 25-33. Web.

Lim, Angelica. "What Roboticists Can Learn From Art, and What Artists Can Learn From Robots." IEEE Spectrum: Technology, Engineering, and Science News. IEEE Spectrum, 02 May 2013. Web. 23 Apr. 2017.

Parrott, David. "Diversity and Adaptation: Military Enterprise during the Thirty Years War." The Business of War (n.d.): 101-36. Web.

Singer, P. W. Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the Twenty-first Century. New York: Penguin, 2010. Print.

Tech Museum. "The Robot Zoo." Links and Cool Stuff. N.p., 2016. Web. 23 Apr. 2017.

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