Gilded Silence

Inspired by The Twilight Zone episode “The Silence,” this project reimagines the unsettling wager between a wealthy gentleman who challenges a club member, Tennyson, to remain silent for one full year in exchange for a large sum of money. What began as a test of willpower transforms into a psychological battle laced with manipulation, voyeurism, and class tension.

In my reinterpretation, the narrative is placed in the Baroque era, a period defined by theatricality, grandeur, and ornamental excess. The set is designed as a two-tier stage: the upper deck hosts the observing members of the gentleman's club, while the lower level serves as Tennyson's quarters. His room is rich with visual opulence but the luxury is deceptive.

The environment draws inspiration from terrariums and apothecary bottles, acting as a self-contained world in which Tennyson is both subject and spectacle. This layered spatial design highlights the contrast between appearance and experience, and frames silence as both performance and imprisonment.

This project explores the illusion of comfort through the lens of excess. The ornate space becomes a metaphorical cage, raising questions about whether wealth and luxury can truly replace freedom. By positioning the audience above Tennyson both physically and socially, the design critiques systems of control and surveillance, revealing how those in power curate, contain, and consume others for their own entertainment.