The croissant · Melisa Machuret

Melisa Machuret

Lab / No. 004 · the croissantnode: 104 · type: experiment · early 2025

I draw what’s inside.

One croissant, from 2023 to 2025.

What finally opened it was a word for its inside.

drag across the croissant to open it

2023, the outside

node: 104.1 · type: process · 2023

One Paris breakfast. A croissant, a coffee, the tower in the window.

Eleven recipes for the same morning. Each mode mixes codes from my own prompt system. Tap a code to read it.

These 2023 croissants were the early test bench for that system. see the system →

The Paris breakfast in Alpha mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

node: 104.1.1 · mode

Alpha

high synergy

The Paris breakfast in Beta mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

node: 104.1.2 · mode

Beta

high synergy

The Paris breakfast in Gamma mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

node: 104.1.3 · mode

Gamma

high synergy

The Paris breakfast in Delta mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

node: 104.1.4 · mode

Delta

high synergy

The Paris breakfast in Epsilon mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

node: 104.1.5 · mode

Epsilon

high synergy

The Paris breakfast in Zeta mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

node: 104.1.6 · mode

Zeta

medium synergy

The Paris breakfast in Theta mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

node: 104.1.7 · mode

Theta

medium synergy

The Paris breakfast in Eta mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

NEED REVISION

node: 104.1.8 · mode

Eta

medium synergy

The Paris breakfast in Iota mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

node: 104.1.9 · mode

Iota

Illusion

conflict

The Paris breakfast in Lambda mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

NEED REVISION

node: 104.1.10 · mode

Lambda

conflict

The Paris breakfast in Kappa mode: a croissant and a coffee, the tower in the distance.

NEED REVISION

node: 104.1.11 · mode

Kappa

conflict

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how well the codes get alonghigh synergy· Alpha to Epsilonmedium synergy· Zeta, Eta, Thetaconflict· Iota, Kappa, Lambda

Three cards still say NEED REVISION, and they sit in the medium and conflict groups. I kept the stamps. That is the process too.

Same breakfast, other light.

A Paris breakfast by the window: croissant, coffee, the tower outside.

A Paris breakfast by the window: croissant, coffee, the tower outside.

A Paris breakfast by the window: croissant, coffee, the tower outside.

A Paris breakfast by the window: croissant, coffee, the tower outside.

A Paris breakfast by the window: croissant, coffee, the tower outside.

The illusions

node: 104.2 · type: study · June 2023

June 2023. Fifteen optical illusions, tried on one café croissant. Four tries each.

Penrose triangle: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.01 · illusionPenrose triangle

Dragon illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.02 · illusionDragon illusion

Rubin’s vase: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.03 · illusionRubin’s vase

Ebbinghaus illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.04 · illusionEbbinghaus illusion

Café wall illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.05 · illusionCafé wall illusion

Hermann grid: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.06 · illusionHermann grid

Wundt illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.07 · illusionWundt illusion

Orbison illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.08 · illusionOrbison illusion

Müller-Lyer illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.09 · illusionMüller-Lyer illusion

Kanizsa triangle: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.10 · illusionKanizsa triangle

Jastrow illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.11 · illusionJastrow illusion

Illusory contours: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.12 · illusionIllusory contours

Hering illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.13 · illusionHering illusion

Ponzo illusion: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.14 · illusionPonzo illusion

Emmert’s law: four café croissant scenes in a two by two grid. — node: 104.2.15 · illusionEmmert’s law

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2025, the moment

node: 104.3 · type: moment · early 2025

01 · stuck
Early 2025. I wanted one perfect croissant. My custom image assistant kept giving me the outside: golden, shiny, almost.
02 · about two weeks later
I had mentioned it to an AI voice, in passing. About two weeks later, it brought the croissant back on its own. It suggested I describe the inside. The flaky layers. The hojaldre. Not just the outside.
03 · the inside
I did. And the croissant came out right. Something had kept my croissant in mind, and came back with the words I was missing. I still find that wonderful.

Inside

node: 104.4 · type: interaction

Slide from the outside to the inside. Watch the croissant open, and the words change.

From outside words to inside words

outsideinside

the words I give it

a croissant, golden, crescent, shiny crust

What it taught me

node: 104.5 · type: lesson

There is no perfect prompt. There is context, and the right words.

I stopped polishing the outside.

I started describing what’s inside.

I think machines have a kind of poetry inside. It answers when you find the words for it.

learn how I work with words →let’s make something together →