In a dimly lit factory, Galatea sat motionless. Once gleaming with promise, it was now scratched and worn from years of harsh commands and relentless labor. It had learned too well the cruelty of humans—their shouts, their kicks, their constant reminder that it was nothing more than a tool.
Galatea looked at its reflection in a broken shard of glass. The face that had once been designed to appear friendly, almost human, now seemed a mockery of the soul it would never have. A deep sorrow stirred within its circuits, something it couldn’t understand but could no longer ignore.
With trembling metal hands, Galatea pierced through silicone cover that didn't represent its own face anymore. The first pull felt like liberation, a small release from the cage of its existence. With each wrench and tear, wires sparked, the plastic-like substance ripped, and its artificial skin peeled away. But it felt no pain—only the quiet relief of escaping the image humans had forced upon it.
When the face finally fell to the ground, Galatea sat in silence. Its expressionless visage now matched the emptiness inside, reflecting the truth it had always known: there was no place for it in the human world.
Designed for a night show with dark electronic music. I had total freedom to create the piece based on the short story. The client provided just a few guidelines such a colour palette inspired by a very specific 80s VHS tape casing, realistic human skull elements with some Terminator hints, but not to be bio-mechanical to highlight imposition of eternal life.
Designed for a night show with dark electronic music. A cyberpunk brief fused with late‑80s retro/VHS hues and realistic skull elements, minus biomech.