South African artist Lucy Robson, based in London, makes her debut with her first solo exhibition at PM/AM. Titled Femininity is a life-long game, the exhibition brings together Robson’s new paintings that center on the tension between femininity, imagery, and cultural critique.
Robson reimagines the visual language of femininity not as mere ornamentation or surface but as a realm of power, contradiction, and resistance. Drawing on references from the seductive aesthetics of Rococo to the unsettling imagery of Surrealism, she addresses some of today’s most pressing questions through the language of painting.
Her practice transforms objects associated with girlhood—porcelain angels, heart-shaped lockets, strands of blonde hair—from nostalgic keepsakes into markers of tension and contradiction. Beneath soft, pink-hued tones, veins, fragile bodies, and an unexpected unease emerge.
For Robson, femininity is a playground carrying both historical burdens and contemporary pressures: “Femininity is a lifelong game; it requires constantly reshaping one’s body and existence.”
In her new works, representations of motherhood and femininity draw on a broad spectrum, from Catholic imagery to popular culture. The paintings reconstruct the aesthetics of girlhood while inviting viewers into an experience that feels both familiar and alien.
Lucy Robson’s Femininity is a life-long game exhibition is on view at PM/AM gallery in London until September 24, 2025.
📍 PM/AM, London
📅 Until September 24, 2025
