Reconfiguring aesthetic values: a power-sensitive framework for AI-mediated visual communication

This conceptual analysis argues that aesthetic values in AI-mediated visual culture are socially constructed and shaped by power relations rather than being universally shared or psychologically neutral. Visual content is now produced, circulated, and evaluated within socio-technical systems governed by platform infrastructures, algorithmic recommendation mechanisms, and data-driven optimization logic. By asking how aesthetic value systems can be reconceptualized through a power-sensitive framework in order to understand AI-mediated visual communication, the conceptual analysis critically reconstructs Ye Zezhou's aesthetics model through insights from critical social theory. Methodologically, this conceptual analysis adopts a critical conceptual synthesis approach, proceeding through analytical deconstruction, critical reconstruction, and internal theoretical validation. Each component of Ye's original framework is critically examined to identify implicit assumptions regarding universality and individual autonomy. These components are then reconstructed through the integration of power-sensitive concepts such as hegemony, cultural capital, ideological mediation, and institutional authority. The reconstructed framework provides analytical tools for interrogating aesthetic inequality and for imagining more inclusive and democratic forms of aesthetic participation in AI-mediated visual communication.