While We Slumber

Kitt (also known as Lady Kitt) opens While We Slumber at God's House Tower on Friday 14 August, from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM. The exhibition was commissioned by 'a space' arts, and the launch evening brings together the sculpture and the sound that go with it.

At its heart, the show is about sleepovers — the midnight feasts, the whispered conversations, the makeshift forts. Kitt uses those rituals to look at how social sleeping deepens emotional connection and changes how we think about care, intimacy, and belonging. She calls the central idea 'emotional heritage', and she traces the history of communal slumber within the tower itself: from its use for incarceration in the 18th and 19th centuries to more recent artist residencies and events. It's a strange, specific kind of history to pull from — the people who slept here when they had no choice, and the artists who've slept here by choice.

Kitt is a disabled sculptor whose own work is shaped by a semi-nomadic childhood. She's exhibited internationally at venues like the Atlanta Contemporary and the Saatchi Gallery, and she was a finalist for the 2024 NE Culture Awards Visual Artist of the Year. While We Slumber isn't a solo effort, either: it's co-authored with a soundscape by composer Bridie Jackson, with sleep sounds provided by Finn Ratford, Ada Ratford, and Nick Pirce. The audio is a full part of the experience, not just background.

The launch runs from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM on Friday 14 August at God's House Tower, Town Quay Road, SO14 2NY, and entry is free.