THE AESTHETICS OF POST-AUTHENTICITY IN THE ERA OF GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

Abstract

This paper explores the emergence of the aesthetics of post-authenticity through a theoretical synthesis of Lev Manovich's concept of the "database" and Rolan Barthes' thesis on the "death of the author," analyzing their reflection in the era of generative artificial intelligence (AI). Starting from Manovich’s assertion that the database represses narrative as the dominant cultural form, the paper defines generative models as automated systems that reduce the creative process to algorithmic recombination within massive data sets. In the second part, the paper reactivates Barthes' "death of the author," pointing out that generative AI represents a radical fulfillment of this theory: the author is no longer a subject with intention, but a "scriptor" who operates within an infinite cosmos of quotes (data sets). Instead of originality created ex nihilo, the aesthetics of post-authenticity shifts the focus to the process of filtering and combining data. In the path of AI technologies, authenticity does not completely disappear, as the user/creator still provides inputs for the creation; the aesthetics of post-authenticity is defined as a specific media realization through a database, thereby transferring responsibility for meaning entirely from the creator to the user.