The installation Dynamics of a Dog on a Leash shows a chained four-legged robot dog in a restricted state, about to attack. Viewers face its “murderous gaze” while staying safely beyond its reach. Though it has deadly power, it’s barely controlled by a “chain of ethics.” Will it seem like a “living other”? The dog thrashes, struggles, and collapses from overheating, mimicking a pitiful circus beast. People observe the spectacle as if watching a tragic performance. Social media reactions range from alarm to admiration. Some accuse the artist of harming humanity or abusing robots, while others praise the powerful show. The work highlights how robot motions still trigger our empathy, even though the machines feel no pain. Their reactions are artificial, yet disturbingly lifelike. We are unable to cognitively discern the robot from a real animal. In an age of living with robots, will we grow more sensitive—or completely numb?
Dynamics of a Dog on a Leash / Takayuki Todo - Photo: Takuma Yamazaki
Exhibit
Dynamics of a Dog on a Leash
Takayuki Todo (JP)
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Photo: Takayuki Todo
Takayuki Todo
Takayuki Todo is a media artist. Motivated by the question, “How can a robot—a non-human object that resembles a human and shares the same space with us—become a living human?”, Todo has focused on representing the “gaze” as a “direction of consciousness focusing” and has explored the dynamics of human-robot interaction using self-made robots. His humanoid robot, SEER: Simulative Emotional Expression Robot (2018), has received worldwide acclaim and attracted attention at the Ars Electronica Festival. For his latest work, he chose to use a commercially available, ready-made robot dog.
Credits
Technical staff: Yuki Koyama, Takeru Saito, Kazuki Karakami | With support from: “Project to Support Emerging Media Arts Creators” by Agency of Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan, (2024).
Presented in the context of European Digital Deal. European Digital Deal is co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union and by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Housing, Arts, Culture, Media and Sport.
