“GLITCH: It’s 2022, You Are [back] in a womb” is a speculative installation that reimagines life in the womb, and is a part of Nyahan’s larger body of work  titled Existential Bodies. The project is a multimedia presentation of the artist’s preoccupation with  objects and beings that trigger thoughts on the past, present and future of our bodies. What does it mean that we exist? What does it mean to exist in relation to these objects? She uses the womb as a point of departure into the unknown, encouraging viewers to playfully contemplate/negotiate their own realities and self. 

The thought of having inhabited a womb yet having no recollection of your stay is disconcerting.  It is a universal experience yet none of us can share our perspectives on that–a paradox. In this piece, Nyahan presents a humorous take on what life in the womb is like. What  does the environment feel like? What sounds may have been heard? She constructs this semi fictional environment by experimenting with audio, visuals and tactile senses. GLITCH comes together by fusing recorded sounds from wombs and voiceovers, projecting from  textile figures in space, juxtaposing animations of pregnancy ultrasounds and distorted  images. In the piece, there is a screening of a short film where participants give “advice” to the fetus/ inhabitants of the womb and answer the question, “If you could decide whether to be born     or not, what would you choose and why?” 

Nyahan ponders on many questions throughout the piece: why can’t we choose to be born and what does that mean? Why  does the thought of being here feel so disconnected sometimes? “When I look at objects of birth, I have a heavy feeling that is questioning my existence. It might be the feeling of death. I’m not sure, but I invite everyone to engage in that feeling, explore it, go crazy with it and have fun with it”. 


This piece was exhibited in the group show, “If We’re Happy In Our Dreams, Does that Count?” at ifa gallery Stuttgart, Germany and was curated by Foundation for Contemoprary Arts Ghana (27th October 2022 - 08th January 2023.