The Puppet Master Reborn in Chrome

Hajime Sorayama’s Second Ghost in the Shell Sculpture

The Kansai edition of Ghost and the Shell: Ghost and the Shell is currently being held at the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art from July 17 to August 30, 2026.

A major highlight is Sexy Robot_The Ghost in the Shell type 2, Hajime Sorayama’s second sculptural collaboration with the franchise. While the first piece was inspired by Motoko Kusanagi, Type 2 reimagines the Puppet Master, the self-aware artificial intelligence known as Project 2501.

Although the sculpture was previously shown at Sorayama’s Tokyo exhibition, this marks its first appearance within an official Ghost in the Shell exhibition.

Giving a Physical Body to a Digital Lifeform

In the original story, the Puppet Master is an intelligence born inside the network rather than a human consciousness placed inside a cybernetic body. Sorayama transforms this bodyless digital entity into one of his signature chrome figures.

Made with materials including aluminum, ABS resin, and mirror-like silver coating, the sculpture is displayed inside a large stainless-steel structure. Its reflective surface changes with the surrounding light and the movement of visitors, reinforcing the idea of an identity shaped by information and its environment.

The collaboration goes beyond simply turning a character into a statue. By giving the Puppet Master a physical “shell,” Sorayama visualizes one of the franchise’s central questions: can artificial consciousness be considered a genuine form of life?