Effects of postmodernism on photography: Analysis of Sherrie Levine's photographs in the context of walter benjamin's notions

In every period of history, the field of art as a field which has been added by adding to it has experienced a great transformation with the development of Renaissance and industrial capitalism. At this point, sense of art has changed in a way that cannot be separated from history, social, technology, economy, and political fields in a period called "after the modern" or "postmodern." In this thesis named, Effects of Postmodernism on Photography: Analysis of Sherrie Levine's Photographs in the Context of Walter Benjamin's Notions, the effects of postmodernism on the understanding of art, and especially postmodern developments in the field of photography were questioned. Sherrie Levine's photographs exhibitions, which named 'After Walker Evans' and 'After Edward Weston' were examined by literature review, and techniques of qualitative analysis in the context of Walter Benjamin's concepts in photography. The art activity of postmodern thought developed on methods such as citation, copying, reproduction, reproduce and self-appropriation with the invention of photography. In postmodern art, ethics and aesthetic values had been rejected, a conceptual art understanding and dominated practices, such as pastiche, parody, collage, and montage. Walter Benjamin's works in the literature and the concepts he used in these studies show the frequently used sources in postmodern photography practices. Photography has changed the course of copying and reproduction and it has been very effective in shaping the concept of postmodern art. Sherrie Levine's "After Walker Evans" and "After Edward Weston" works are, in the context of presenting the most striking examples of originality, the meaning of the art and the work of art and the place of the artist, the role of the artist and the audience.