Non-human Subjects: The Fallen Gospel

A theatrical spectacle about capital, technology, and the politics of the body performed in downtown Shanghai.

Concept

This is a theatrical spectacle about capital, technology, and the politics of the body. A robot, personifying a capitalist, is mechanically pushed through the bustling streets of downtown Shanghai. It monotonously repeats the supposed truths once preached by capitalists—struggle, success, gratitude, and hymns—in a mechanical tone.

These phrases, long integrated into the collective social consciousness and shaping contemporary philosophy of survival, are now stripped to meaningless noise through deliberate repetition. In this performance, the power of capital and the invisible mechanisms of technology manifest in an ironically stark manner.

The design of the capitalist robot is not to represent an individual but to serve as a “symbol” revealing the automated operations of capital power. The robot’s movements, devoid of emotion or autonomous thought, merely propelled by others, showcase the indifference and invisibility of capital power through repetitive, hollow quotations. The aversion shown by passersby also reflects the public’s latent fear and distancing from capital.