In our fast-changing economic, social and environmental context, family (in all its variety of types) remains as formative as ever. The rhythms of early interactions, resonating with our own tendencies, inform how we develop close relationships. As we grow and take on responsibilities ourselves, questions of how to change these patterns may become more urgent.

For this exhibition, four contemporary artists share artworks around patterns of play, fantasy, support and constraint at work in families, offering a space of reflection and potential shift.

Artist and curator, Clio Lloyd-Jacob says,

“I have been privileged to work with many families, and witnessed, in the love and struggles of their interactions, common joys and concerns, and how shared spaces and activities can make these easier to recognise. Bringing together different artists is a small act of rebalancing this societal separation. Themes are shared in playful and imaginative ways, creating a visual dialogue about responsibility and responsiveness, the desire to provide, guide and train, and the burden this can become, as well as issues of attachment and separation and the intergenerational transmission of trauma.“

Photograph: Noor Ali Chagani, Untitled (Dreamland series), 2025, clay of paper, 20.5 x 20.5 cm. Photograph by artist.