What is the Meaning of Life?

16 May – 15 November 2026

Our spring 2026 season will delve into the fundamental questions of human existence, from rule-making, to time and play.

Living by the Rule: Contemporary meets Medieval

16 May – 4 October 2026

Exploring the idea of routine and regulation, this exhibition reflects on the ‘rules’ that we live by today. Taking as its starting point the Rule of St Benedict, written in the 6th century, as a paradigmatic example of a guide for communal living, it brings together extraordinary objects from medieval monastic contexts – the Hatton Codex, the earliest copy of the Rule of St Benedict in the world, made in c. 700 AD; the Etheldreda Panels – one of only a handful of English medieval paintings to have survived the Reformation; and the Ormesby and Macclesfield psalters, the most important illuminated manuscripts of the 14th century – with contemporary works by artists including Andrea Büttner, Tacita Dean, Ingrid Pollard, Elizabeth Price and Lucy Skaer.

The exhibition vividly presents the richness and complexity of the dialogue between medieval experiments in a different way to live, and modern reflections upon how life is (and might yet be) organised.

Living by the Rule: Contemporary meets Medieval is curated by Dr Jessica Barker FSA, Senior Lecturer in Medieval Art History at The Courtauld and Dr Ed Krčma, Associate Professor of Art History at the University of East Anglia.

Play Power

16 May – 4 October 2026

Showcasing a variety of manifestations of play, both past and present, ranging from board games, games of chance, physical activity, creativity, video games and make believe, as well as ritual gambling and divination, the exhibition highlights the enduring role of play in shaping human societies.

It includes historical objects and artworks such as an ancient Egyptian senet board and game pieces, William Hogarth’s paintings A House of Cards (c.1730) and A Children’s Tea Party (1730), Germaine Richier’s Chessboard, Large Version (1959) and iconic toys, such as Bird and Fish, designed by Patrick Rylands. Work by artists including André Breton, Eileen Agar, John Armstrong, Leo Robinson, Sir John Lavery and Lygia Clark is also on display.

Play Power is curated by Tania Moore, Head of Exhibitions at the Sainsbury Centre.

Joy Like Time

20 June – 15 November 2026

This exhibition explores how memory, ritual and renewal intersect through the work of internationally renowned artists. Featuring works by Marina Abramović, Kalliopi Lemos and Gillian Wearing.

Tracking the careers of a select group of artists in depth, this exhibition looks at how they have found life’s meaning through their practice via craft and repetition and asks, if duration marks everything from commutes to lifespans, from harvests to histories, might it also help us confront one of humanity’s most enduring questions: what is the meaning of life?

Joy Like Time is curated by John Kenneth Paranada, Curator of Art and Climate Change at the Sainsbury Centre.

The What is the Meaning of Life? season also includes two newly commissioned artworks presented in the museum: Life in the Multiverse: Libby Heaney, a participatory digital installation using quantum computing; and CATKINS FOREVER: Ruth Ewan, which sees the artist working with people across Norfolk to unearth their personal stories relating to plants and trees.