[Posthuman Wombs]

When artist Anna Fries was pregnant, they didn’t feel at all like the stereotypical image of the expectant parent—a woman with hands clasped over her belly, her face glowing, gazing blissfully into the distance. It’s an image that leaves little room for those who are pregnant but do not identify as female, or for the reality that being pregnant can be physically tough and extremely disorienting. High time, then, to de-romanticize and de-feminize pregnancy.

This interactive installation takes you into a colorful virtual womb, your host for a trip that will expand your horizons and perceptions. Anna Fries and sound artist Malu Peeters explore all manner of physical possibilities for pregnancy—certainly not limiting themselves to glowing young women. [Posthuman Wombs] is part of a major long-term project in which Fries en Peeters take a non-normative approach to exploring pregnant bodies in a combination of VR and live performance.

Winner of the 2021 Netherlands Film Fund DocLab Interactive Grant