The Lustrum Project is my attempt to give voice to despair and, perhaps, hope that have been hovering in the air for the past year, to make them physical and try to live through them. Basically, it is a view of a dystopian future through the eyes of a person with clinical depression who grew up on sci-fi from the 80s.
It's an exploration of liminality, the relationship between humans and machines, and the dialogue between them. It's an invitation to reflect on our tools and prospects, where visual storytelling is fragmentary and the interpretation of symbols is not imposed. The transformative experience of interaction with the frightening yet seductive post-human world and encountering its artifacts that we cannot always decipher.
The digital image created in collaboration with a neural network greets us with a declaration of its immateriality. Most characters have no faces, while others are neutral and detached, not allowing us to share their feelings. Is it possible to give definitive answers to the questions we continue to ask ourselves in this murky world?
It's an exploration of liminality, the relationship between humans and machines, and the dialogue between them. It's an invitation to reflect on our tools and prospects, where visual storytelling is fragmentary and the interpretation of symbols is not imposed. The transformative experience of interaction with the frightening yet seductive post-human world and encountering its artifacts that we cannot always decipher.
The digital image created in collaboration with a neural network greets us with a declaration of its immateriality. Most characters have no faces, while others are neutral and detached, not allowing us to share their feelings. Is it possible to give definitive answers to the questions we continue to ask ourselves in this murky world?
One technological disaster followed another, centuries passed, until the Red Fog appeared on the planet. Any living creature that entered it risked their life: some emerged unscathed, some mutated and gained abilities, while others died within days. People and animals avoided the fog, and vegetation changed beyond recognition.
The fog would appear suddenly, spreading across the entire planet, driving people out of cities, and then vanish just as suddenly. After a few years, the fog became much less frequent, confined mostly to the swamps. Humanity concentrated in oasis cities where the Red Fog never appeared.
Isolation pushed humanity to develop new technologies suitable for this new way of life, such as implants that enhance bodily capabilities. Some replaced only one part of their body, while others replaced everything or left everything untouched.
However, there was a movement that saw the fog as divine punishment. They advocated for the rejection of human modification, while some advocated for the use of the fog as a test: if you survived, your sins were forgiven. They were known as the Scorched.
The mutated individuals gained an unprecedented connection with nature: they could accelerate plant growth by several times, enter symbiosis with them, and anticipate changes in nature. It turned out that fog mutants were tied to the Red Fog: they needed it to maintain their abilities. The most talented individuals went to live in the swamps, not hesitating to use the latest technical developments. Swamp dwellers built their homes based around structures from their previous life.
Drone caravans transport goods between oases. Swamp dwellers hunt them down to obtain the necessary resources. Oasis residents, therefore, employ Theseus Fighters, former humans turned into machines, to protect caravans and hunt the swamp dwellers.
The fog would appear suddenly, spreading across the entire planet, driving people out of cities, and then vanish just as suddenly. After a few years, the fog became much less frequent, confined mostly to the swamps. Humanity concentrated in oasis cities where the Red Fog never appeared.
Isolation pushed humanity to develop new technologies suitable for this new way of life, such as implants that enhance bodily capabilities. Some replaced only one part of their body, while others replaced everything or left everything untouched.
However, there was a movement that saw the fog as divine punishment. They advocated for the rejection of human modification, while some advocated for the use of the fog as a test: if you survived, your sins were forgiven. They were known as the Scorched.
The mutated individuals gained an unprecedented connection with nature: they could accelerate plant growth by several times, enter symbiosis with them, and anticipate changes in nature. It turned out that fog mutants were tied to the Red Fog: they needed it to maintain their abilities. The most talented individuals went to live in the swamps, not hesitating to use the latest technical developments. Swamp dwellers built their homes based around structures from their previous life.
Drone caravans transport goods between oases. Swamp dwellers hunt them down to obtain the necessary resources. Oasis residents, therefore, employ Theseus Fighters, former humans turned into machines, to protect caravans and hunt the swamp dwellers.
