Lives Less Ordinary

Pearl Alcock / Vanley Burke / Chila Kumari Singh Burman / Joanne Coates / Beryl Cook / Julie Cook / Connor Coulston / Creative Black Country / Leslie Duxbury / Joan Eardley / Feministo! / Martin Figura / Jimmy Floyd / Denzil Forrester / Sandra George / Julian Germain / Ken Grant / Derrick Greaves / Margaret Green / Bert Hardy / Chris Harrison / Mahtab Hussain / Izabela Jedrzejczyk / Jasleen Kaur / Neil Kenlock / Chris Killip / Sirkka Liisa Konttinen / Mark Leckey / Roman Manfredi / Masterji / Rene Matić / Tish Murtha / Kelly O’Brien / Hardeep Pandhal / Robert Parkinson / Hetain Patel / Charlie Phillips / Ceri Richards / Bob Robinson / Anne Ryan / Corbin Shaw / George Shaw / Jack Smith / Jo Spence / Hannah Starkey / Emilie Taylor / Ten 8 Ltd / Triple Transformations / Eric Tucker / Gavin Watson / Matthew Arthur Williams / Richard Young

Our 2025 exhibition explores the overlooked richness and diversity of working-class life and creative expression from the 1950s to now.

Challenging long-standing inequities and misrepresentation, this exhibition presents compelling assertions of pride, tenderness, resilience, humour and hopefulness, and moments of play, joy and rest. Looking beyond the often reductive narratives of crisis and struggle that traditionally characterise representation of working-class people and communities in British arts institutions, Lives Less Ordinary champions a gaze from within, from artists from working-class backgrounds who have used their creativity to reflect wide-ranging experiences and identities, depicting and defining their culture and communities on their own terms.

Lives Less Ordinary brings together ceramics, film, painting, photography and sculpture from wide-ranging public collections, archives, and contemporary artists across the UK, to explore a nuanced and authentic reflection of working-class experience, within an architectural setting that both manifests and interrogates wealth and privilege.

Lives Less Ordinary is a Two Temple Place exhibition, conceived and curated by Samantha Manton.

The exhibition is supported by Museum as Muck, the Working Class British Art Network, Working Class Creatives Database and Working Arts Club, as well as an advisory group of noted advocates for those underrepresented in the arts sector – Beth Hughes, Michelle McGrath, Jon Sleigh & Afia Yeboah.

The exhibition is accompanied by a wide-ranging programme of cultural events for adults and children including talks, lectures, demonstrations, workshops and Wednesday Late openings until 9pm, as well as the acclaimed Two Temple Place programme for state sector primary schools.

Groups are welcome to book visits to the exhibition. Please be aware that we do not allow tours led by guides unaffiliated with Two Temple Place.

We ask that all groups with 6+ people get in touch with us in advance to let us know about your plan to visit. This is so we can brief our Front of House team and manage the number of people in the building.

Lives Less Ordinary is open from 25 January until 20 April 2025.

Entry is FREE and no booking is required.

Opening hours:
Monday: CLOSED
Tuesday: 11am – 6pm
Wednesday: 11am – 9pm
Thursday: 11am – 6pm
Friday: 11am – 6pm
Saturday: 11am – 6pm
Sunday: 11am – 4.30pm

Easter Opening Times

Friday 18 April: 11am – 6pm
Saturday 19 April: 11am – 6pm
Sunday 20 April: 11am – 4.30pm

We welcome feedback from anyone who’s visited our exhibitions. If you would like to give us feedback about Lives Less Ordinary, you can do that here. Thank you!