Sun Yuan and Peng Yu‘s installation Can’t Help Myself (2016–19)

I’ve gotta tell you about this piece of art that totally wrecked me emotionally. Imagine this robot arm that’s basically fighting for its life because it keeps leaking hydraulic fluid.

This fluid is what keeps it going, so if it leaks too much, it’s game over. The twist? This robot was also programmed to do these cheerful dances for people watching. Back when it was first switched on, it spent loads of time grooving and having a blast with the audience because it could easily deal with the little bit of fluid it lost. Fast forward a few years, and it’s a whole different scene. The poor thing looks worn out and barely has time to dance anymore. It’s all because the leaking got so bad over time, leaving it in this endless struggle to stay “alive.”

And then, in 2019, it just… stopped. Ran out of fluid and couldn’t go on. I’m not even kidding when I say I ended up crying over a robot arm. It was doomed from the start, no matter how hard it tried to keep going. Watching it “bleed” out until it couldn’t move anymore was heart-wrenching. The creators, Sun Yuan & Peng Yu, nailed it with the title ‘Can’t Help Myself.’ Seriously, what a powerful message through art.

But here’s the kicker — it’s like a mirror to how we exhaust ourselves mentally and physically over money, just to keep going. It…