Profound Play

Profound Play project: Play time at the Sainsbury Centre, for adults

Play workshop series 

Take part in a series of six free workshops this summer, as part of an exciting research project to experience an art museum in new and surprising ways. Being part of this new project, Profound Play, could be your chance to try things you wouldn’t normally do in a gallery – such as lying on the floor. 

Dot Howard, an artist specialising in connecting people through live art, will support you to explore the gallery through the playful lenses of humour and spontaneity. Find the absurd, laugh, choose how you want to respond to the artworks, and other curious things.  

Each open-ended session will invite you to experiment with different props and materials within the gallery.  There will be opportunities to take part at your own pace – on your own or with others, energetically or quietly.   

These workshops are for anyone who is 18 or over, curious about playing in an art museum, and willing to try new things. They are aimed at people who are not already regular visitors to the Sainsbury Centre, and no skills or experience is necessary. Come along to our taster session on 11 May if you would like to try some activities before signing up. 

This workshop series is also part of a research project. Please read on for further information. 

 Bookings are currently closed. We are running a reserve list for the workshops in June and July.  To register for the reserve list please contact Rach: Rachel.anstey@uea.ac.uk

Workshop series
Take part in six workshops and contribute to the Profound Play research project at the Sainsbury Centre. Refreshments will be provided.  

8 June 4.30pm-6.30pm 

15 June 4.30pm-6.30pm 

22 June 4.30pm-6.30pm 

29 June 4.30pm-6.30pm 

13 July 4.30pm-6.30pm 

20 July 4.30pm-6.30pm 

Get in touch
Rach Anstey-Sanders Rachel.anstey@uea.ac.uk  

The Profound Play team

Dot Howard is an artist with experience of working with all age groups in lots of different environments, including arts venues, care settings and hospitals. She uses live art as a tool for engaging people, building rapport through multi-sensory, in-the-moment interaction.  

Dr Patrick Yarker is an independent researcher and an Associate Tutor in the School of Education and Lifelong Learning at the University of East Anglia. He edits an academic and campaigning journal: ‘Forum: for promoting 3 to 19 comprehensive education’, which is a platform for highlighting and supportively considering radical and creative educational initiatives in the state education sector and beyond it.  

Rach Anstey-Sanders is the Sainsbury Centre’s Learning Programme Manager for Children and Families. Rach has a background in Early Years education and playwork. In 2024, Rach co-delivered an experimental version of the Sainsbury Centre’s Mini Studio preschoolers’ workshop for adult participants, and she is looking forward to continuing this work through the Profound Play project. 

Research project 

The Profound Play research project will help us at the Sainsbury Centre to understand how inviting adults to play in the museum may change how they see and feel about the artworks they encounter. 

The research question we will be considering is: How does engaging in creative play help adults to connect with a museum collection?

We have teamed up with Dr Patrick Yarker from School of Education and Lifelong Learning at the University of East Anglia (UEA), to help observe what happens in the workshops. Patrick will be present at each session, and participants will be invited to share their experiences with him through a focus group and a questionnaire. Patrick’s observations and the data collected will contribute to a research paper that we will share with other museums and galleries. 

This research is approved by the UEA ethics committee. All the data collected will be anonymous. If you’d like to find out more, Patrick will be present at the taster session on 11 May. You can also address any questions by email to Rach Anstey-Sanders: Rachel.Anstey@uea.ac.uk

All photography by Kate Wolstenholme.