How much space do we have left for play and experimentation in our largely automated lives where everything has to be done as efficiently as possible? What does the replacement of human labour by machines or computers mean for people and their environment? Inspired by Constant’s New Babylon and its Homo Ludens inhabitants, video and performance artist Kitty Maria (NL, 1992) explores these questions in her first museum solo exhibition Femina Ludens. In her work, Kitty Maria investigates this space for play, placing herself in companies to study production processes up close. Sometimes she takes part in them herself and at other times her presence provides a strange interruption to the daily routine.

The ‘Femina Ludens’ exhibition can be seen at Museum van Bommel van Dam in Venlo from 18 March to 2 July 2023.