"Demand for genuine portrayals of the working-class lifestyle in Britain intensifies through a London show that redefines the image of working-class life"
Discover the vibrant world of working-class Britain at Two Temple Place in London, where the exhibition 'Lives Less Ordinary: Working-Class Britain Re-seen' is running until 20 April 2025. This thought-provoking exhibition challenges traditional representations of working-class life, offering a fresh perspective on the richness and diversity of this often-overlooked segment of society.
Curated by Samantha Manton, the exhibition features over 150 pieces from 60 artists, including Rene Matić, Jasleen Kau, Corbin Shaw, Pearl Alcock, Eric Tucker, and many others. The artworks showcase a wide array of mediums, including ceramics, film, painting, photography, and sculpture.
The exhibition is divided into three themes: family and kinship, the plurality of working-class cultures, and the sanctuary of leisure and pleasure. Each theme offers a unique insight into the lives of working-class individuals, moving beyond stereotypes of urban degradation, manual labour, and hardship.
One of the key aims of the exhibition is to ensure that more authentic expressions of working-class life are present on the walls and in the collections of museums and galleries. As such, 'Lives Less Ordinary' serves as a call to action for change, urging institutions to prioritise the inclusion of working-class voices and experiences.
Pearl Alcock's works in the exhibition, for instance, communicate a visual joy derived from her Jamaican heritage, referencing late-night shebeens or 'shubz'. Her vibrant, colourful pieces offer a refreshing departure from the monotony of traditional working-class representations.
Roman Manfredi's photography in the exhibition explores the intersection of class and queerness, presenting the 'everydayness' of people who are proudly queer and proudly working-class. Manfredi comments that he wanted queer working-class voices to be heard and their images to be seen in the environments they inhabit and where they grew up.
The exhibition's theme of leisure and pleasure is provocative, serving as a call to action for change in the representation of working-class life in museums and galleries. It asserts that these representations of working-class life are integral to the identity of British art.
A 2024 report by the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre revealed that only 8% of people working in film, TV, video, radio, and photography in the UK come from working-class backgrounds. The exhibition aims to throw light on the richness of working-class Britain, and many of the artists featured in the exhibition, including Pearl Alcock, deserve to be fully recognised within the lineage of British art history, not just as 'outsiders' but as integral contributors.
For more information about the exhibition, visit the official website at twotempleplace.org. Don't miss this opportunity to immerse yourself in the lesser-seen sides of working-class life, not as something to escape from, but as vibrant worlds of multiplicity. Subscribe to the Two Temple Place newsletter for daily digest of inspiration, escapism, and design stories from around the world.
