M+M (Marc Weis, Martin De Mattia): The Day of the Mantis

Casino Luxembourg – Forum d’art contemporain presents The Day of the Mantis, an immersive film installation by Luxembourgish-German artist duo M+M (Marc Weis, Martin De Mattia) as part of the 16th Gwangju Biennale, You Must Change Your Life.

Bringing together three films—Mad Mieter (2019), Club Bunker (2023), and the newly produced Silent Odd (2026)—the installation transforms the exhibition space into a fragmented cinematic environment inhabited by praying mantises and stick insects.

Moving through three stereoscopic macro-film installations, visitors encounter non-human protagonists inhabiting spaces traditionally associated with human activity: apartments, bunkers, clubs and spaceships. Shot with a 3D macro camera and viewed through 3D glasses, the films create an unsettling sense of physical proximity, placing the viewer at eye level with the insects.

M+M blur the boundaries between animal behaviour and human cultural codes, following the instinctive and unpredictable gestures of their protagonists as they move through carefully constructed miniature architectures. These environments oscillate between human dwelling and biotope, while transparent partitions, architectural interventions, sound and movement overlap to create a fragmented yet continuous cinematic landscape.

Across the three films, different contemporary anxieties emerge. Mad Mieter explores isolation and the loss of empathy; Club Bunker stages an uneasy coexistence of hedonism, latent conflict and retreat; while Silent Odd imagines an escape towards a new habitat beyond an Earth threatened by ecological collapse.

Together, the trilogy proposes a shift away from an exclusively human perspective. Drawing on philosopher Rosi Braidotti’s notion of a “radical repositioning of the subject”, The Day of the Mantis invites viewers to reconsider their relationship with the world through the radically different scale, behaviour and perspective of non-human life.

Presented within the framework of the 16th Gwangju Biennale, The Day of the Mantis resonates with this year’s subject, You Must Change Your Life, through its reflection on ecological crisis, transformation and the possibility of radically rethinking the position of the human within a changing world.

Casino Luxembourg at the Gwangju Biennale

The presentation marks Casino Luxembourg’s first participation in the Gwangju Biennale, extending Casino Luxembourg’s international activities in the year of its 30th anniversary.

The project also continues a long-term collaboration between Casino Luxembourg and M+M that began with the artists’ monographic exhibition 7 Tage (7 Days) in 2015. In 2024, M+M returned to the institution in a curatorial capacity with My Last Will.

For Casino Luxembourg, presenting The Day of the Mantis in Gwangju extends this sustained artistic relationship into an international context and reflects the institution’s commitment to experimentation, artist support and long-term collaboration.

The Day of the Mantis is on view at Gwangju Museum of Art from September 5 to November 15, 2026.

Casino Luxembourg Pavilion is organized by Casino Luxembourg – Forum d’art contemporain and and curated by Kevin Muhlen

With the support of :
Kultur | lx - Arts Council Luxembourg. LuXembourg - Let's Make It Happen and Cargolux Airlines

Photos:©Jaeseo Lee

Visual Identity & Design: © Kianpour.lu