No Kids: On Non-Parenthood

A multimedia show of film installations, album of songs, and events by Louise Ashcroft with Sarah Elena Müller & Luzia Studer.

The album, ‘No Kids Nursery Rhymes’, was initially made in response to Louise Ashcroft’s survey of 180+ people who do not have children and was commissioned by Melanie Bühler in 2024 for group show ‘Burning Down the House: Rethinking Family’ at Kunstmuseum St.Gallen. It was re-exhibited within an installation at the Swiss Church London alongside Ashcroft’s film, ‘What To Expect When You’re Not Expecting’, an hour-long autobiographical comedy based on her 2023 theatre show about her ambivalent childlessness and inequalities in family-making and fertility care.

Accompanying events, including a ‘No Kids Choir’ participatory rehearsal, live singalong performance, screening and brunch discussion group, created a further environment for collectively exploring this important and often unspoken topic. The 3-day exhibition offered a space to heal and process complex emotions, while sharing and discussing ways to build community beyond nuclear kinship.

Curated by Lizzy Drury and Diane Chappalley, The Swiss Church Arts Programme 2025.