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Homo ludens in circulo |
Description of the painting
The painting “Homo ludens in circulo” depicts two soccer players in a moment of ecstatic joy. Following an obviously successful play or goal, one player embraces another from behind. The two bodies merge into a single, monumental figure. The player in the foreground spreads his arms wide, his head thrown back, his mouth open. The gesture conveys triumph, enthusiasm, and emotional liberation. The bold colors of the jerseys — vibrant blue and reddish orange (arranged as if on a map) — make the figures stand out clearly against the bright, empty background. A white soccer ball appears beneath the players, while a green circular segment at the bottom edge of the painting frames the scene.
The series of soccer paintings can be viewed as an exploration of soccer as contemporary iconography: soccer players appear in it not only as athletes, but as bearers of roles and visual tropes that were once reserved for saints, rulers, heroes, or allegorical figures. “Homo ludens in circulo” is a particularly central point of reference within the body of work because here the question of the very image of humanity takes center stage.
The composition draws on one of the most famous images in European art history: Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man. In Leonardo’s work, the human figure stands at the center of a geometric order, whereby an equivalence is drawn between “man” and “human,” which in turn defines women as the “other” or the non-human. The players, in distributed roles, assume the same poses as their famous counterpart. The front player’s wide-outstretched arms and the foot positions of both players are immediately reminiscent of the pose of the famous Renaissance figure. Only the embrace is new (and this in homophobic soccer…). In this respect, Alexandra Weidmann adopts the model as a quotation but fundamentally transforms it. The idealized individual becomes a pair of soccer players; the static figure in a study becomes a moment of intense movement and emotion. The complete circle of the original model now appears only as a fragment. The segment of the circle refers to the original circle without completing it. The perfection that the circle represents is reduced to fragments.
With this change, the semantics of the image also shifts. The Vitruvian Man embodies the humanist ideal of the Renaissance: human/man as the measure of all things, embedded in a rational, mathematically comprehensible world order. In “Homo ludens in circulo”, this order is replaced by play (coincidences, unpredictable risks, etc.). The title itself refers to Johan Huizinga’s cultural-historical concept of “Homo ludens”, the playing human1. Huizinga did not view play as a mere pastime, but as a fundamental cultural practice from which community, rituals, and social order emerge. In this sense, soccer appears here as a modern form of cultural self-affirmation.
At the same time, the composition opens up another layer of meaning. The central figure’s outstretched arms create a cross-shaped silhouette that inevitably evokes associations with Christian iconography. The pose is reminiscent of both the Vitruvian Man and depictions of the crucified Christ. The embrace between the two players combines triumph and devotion, community and transcendence. This lends the scene an almost sacred dimension. The soccer celebration is not depicted as an everyday moment, but as an image of collective ecstasy reminiscent of religious experiences.
It is noteworthy that the image neither satirizes nor criticizes soccer. Rather, it is taken seriously as a social ritual that now fulfills functions once performed by religion, myth, or state ceremonies. The players appear as representatives of a modern conception of humanity that is no longer defined primarily by cosmic order or religious certainty, but rather by shared experience and playful participation. The question remains: to what extent have modern societies moved away from the equation “man = human being”?
The circular segment at the bottom of the painting brings together these various levels of meaning. It can be interpreted as a reference to the circle of the Vitruvian Man, as a suggestion of a playing field, and finally as a kind of fragmented halo. This creates a multi-layered visual structure in which Renaissance humanism, religious tradition, and contemporary sports culture merge.
Homo ludens in circulo is thus far more than a depiction of soccer players. The painting reflects on the question of what images of humanity the present era produces and what cultural practices today foster community, meaning, and identity. Through the connection between Leonardo, Huizinga, and Christian iconography, a multi-layered symbol of modern humanity emerges – not as Homo sapiens, but as Homo ludens, as a playing human within the circle of his dominant cultural world.
1 Johan Huizinga’s “Homo Ludens” is a classic work of cultural history that places the playing human (Homo ludens) alongside the thinking human (Homo sapiens) and the creative human (Homo faber). In it, the Dutch historian demonstrates that play is not merely a trivial matter, but rather a force that shapes culture and lies at the origin of law, art, poetry, and science.
Johan Huizinga (Autor), Andreas Flitner (Hrsg.): Homo Ludens. Vom Ursprung der Kultur im Spiel („Homo ludens“, 1939). Rowohlt Verlag, Reinbek 2009, ISBN 978-3-499-55435-3.