A Study of the “Aura” Experience of AIGC Art in Immersive Virtual Exhibitions
Abstract
In the age of artificial intelligence, a new form of art based on AIGC (AI-Generated Content) technology is emerging and demonstrating significant research value. Because its core form consists of algorithms and data, allowing for infinite replication, AIGC art seems to naturally dissolve the "Aura" proposed by Walter Benjamin. However, when this art form is combined with Immersive Virtual Exhibitions, it often regains a unique "here-and-now" charm, presenting an effect similar to the "Aura" of traditional artworks. This raises the central question of this paper: Can immersive exhibitions with participation of AIGC reshape a new kind of "Aura"? This study selects Refik Anadol’s Unsupervised — Machine Hallucinations — MoMA, Ouchhh Studio’s POETIC-AI, and Nohlab’s VAN GOGH: AN IMMERSIVE JOURNEY as representative cases, and conducts analysis from four dimensions: technology, experience, interaction, and social reproduction. The study finds that immersive exhibitions create a new "digital aura" by transforming the appreciation of art from a static viewing of an "original" to a dynamic experience for the audience. This "digital aura" does not rely on the material uniqueness of the artwork but is rooted in the unique and irreplicable nature of the individual experience.
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