Cyberpunk has left a profound mark on my artistic journey, shaping the way I approach both aesthetics and the deeper themes of my work. As a teenager, my interests shifted heavily toward science fiction, starting with novels and movies before moving into animation. A pivotal moment came when I received a VHS copy of Akira at around 10 years old. Watching it was transformative—it pulled me away from mainstream media, opening my mind to new, raw perspectives. A few years later, the theatrical release of Ghost in the Shell brought another powerful realization that life was like the Net: “vast and infinite.” It shouldn’t be confined to the small town I was living in—there was so much more to explore! I still feel a certain nostalgia for OEDO 808 and Bubblegum Crisis’s Tinsel City, with their dark, intricate depictions of high-tech, low-life worlds. (Of course, Blade Runner and most cyberpunk cinema have also been central influences!)
These early experiences laid the foundation for a fascination that only deepened with time. Later, I dove into the novels of William Gibson and Neal Stephenson, whose visionary worlds expanded my understanding of cyberpunk and its themes. Through these writers, I began exploring postmodernist philosophy, like Donna Haraway’s cyborg theory, Mark Fisher’s capitalist realism, and Foucault’s panopticism. Each of these reshaped my perspective on technology, identity, and society.
Cyberpunk’s dystopian visions of decaying cities, blurred lines between human and machine, and its commentary on technology’s grip on society resonate deeply in my work. In my Derelict/Black series, for instance, I reimagine sprawling urban environments as maze-like remnants of civilizations in decline, capturing a future in ruins. Even Kura Curiosa bears cyberpunk’s imprint. Each modular specimen embodies a blend of speculative technology and biological fusion, reflecting the biomechanoid aesthetic central to cyberpunk. By allowing collectors to generate pieces through 3D printing and configure Kura Curiosa’s modular components, I aim to bring this ethos to life, blurring the line between observer and creator.
Cyberpunk’s influence is more than aesthetic—it pushes me to question the intersections of technology and humanity and to explore what these tensions might mean for the future.
