Pre-Post for 9/16 Benjamin

This week in class we primarily have focused on architecture in many forms. As I found myself reading Walter Benjamin’s “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction” I was especially intrigued by the later portion of the text which focused also on architecture. A specific part that stuck out to me was that on page 33 that reads the following : “ Buildings have been man’s companions since primeval times. Many art forms have developed and perished…Architecture has never been idle. Its history is more ancient than that of any other art, and its claim to being a living force has significance in every attempt to comprehend the relationship of the masses to art.”
To me this quote meant many things, but seems primarily to excite me because it pin points how even over time, with technology and changes in cultures and no discrimination between Nations its importance still exists the way it always has. It is also interesting to me to think that architecture is the root of all other art forms which never occurred to me. In addition to architecture being the basic foundation to which a home is built, it is also the foundation for the sculpture done in the back yard. However, to me being the basis of something like a home is much more significant than anything else. What does home even refer to these days? In my opinion home is where the family gathers for all occasions, good, bad and the in between. In this specific occasion I have taken an interest in the architecture portion of Benjamin’s work because my dad is an architect and so I have spent my whole life around it.
It is key to understand architecture and that it is still just as important as it was years and years ago as it is today. Unlike the other forms of art Benjamin mentions architecture doesn’t seem to have taken the large toll other art forms have with the advance in technology. Clearly something is significant and very important if it has overall stayed clear of the rapid and vast changes through technology in our society.