What is the Meaning of Life?
Making and Breaking the Rules We Live By
Published on 31. March 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
88 pages
978-1-83636-043-8 (ISBN)
Description
Taking the most existential question, 'What is the Meaning of Life?', this publication dissects creative expression, considers the place for frivolity, and unpacks the rhythms and rules of the everyday to address how we might live more meaningfully.
In this highly illustrated book, John Kenneth Paranada looks at how creativity can offer a greater sense of purpose, and the role of art in resetting the tempo of a distracted culture. Ben Highmore and Sam Tacconi explore how embracing play and a gaming approach to life can bring value and make sense of behaviours, both on an individual level and across communities, while Ed Krcma and Jessica Barker address the evolving daily routines and societal rules by which we live our lives, examining how these impact our sense of purpose and belonging. Finally, Rosy Gray reflects on how grief can offer pause and how we can find solace in the multiverse, urging us to re-consider the meaning and value of our (many) lives.
This book accompanies a season of exhibitions and projects at the Sainsbury Centre.
In this highly illustrated book, John Kenneth Paranada looks at how creativity can offer a greater sense of purpose, and the role of art in resetting the tempo of a distracted culture. Ben Highmore and Sam Tacconi explore how embracing play and a gaming approach to life can bring value and make sense of behaviours, both on an individual level and across communities, while Ed Krcma and Jessica Barker address the evolving daily routines and societal rules by which we live our lives, examining how these impact our sense of purpose and belonging. Finally, Rosy Gray reflects on how grief can offer pause and how we can find solace in the multiverse, urging us to re-consider the meaning and value of our (many) lives.
This book accompanies a season of exhibitions and projects at the Sainsbury Centre.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Illustrations
50 Illustrations, color
Dimensions
Height: 246 mm
Width: 185 mm
Thickness: 8 mm
Weight
342 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-83636-043-8 (9781836360438)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Tania Moore is Head of Exhibitions at the Sainsbury Centre. Her publications include Rhythm and Geometry: Constructivist Art in Britain Since 1951 (2021) and Henry Moore: Friendships and Legacies (2020).
With contributions from Jessica Barker, Senior Lecturer in Medieval Art at The Courtauld in London; Jago Cooper, Executive Director of the Sainsbury Centre, and Professor of Art and Archaeology at the UEA; Rosy Gray, Head of Living Art at the Sainsbury Centre; Ben Highmore, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Studies at the University of Sussex and a Fellow of the British Academy. Ed Krcma, Associate Professor of Art History at the UEA; John Kenneth Paranada, Curator of Art and Climate Change at the Sainsbury Centre, and a researcher at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, UEA; and Samuele Tacconi, an archaeologist with a PhD from the UEA.
With contributions from Jessica Barker, Senior Lecturer in Medieval Art at The Courtauld in London; Jago Cooper, Executive Director of the Sainsbury Centre, and Professor of Art and Archaeology at the UEA; Rosy Gray, Head of Living Art at the Sainsbury Centre; Ben Highmore, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Studies at the University of Sussex and a Fellow of the British Academy. Ed Krcma, Associate Professor of Art History at the UEA; John Kenneth Paranada, Curator of Art and Climate Change at the Sainsbury Centre, and a researcher at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, UEA; and Samuele Tacconi, an archaeologist with a PhD from the UEA.
Content
Foreword - Jago Cooper
Introduction - Tania Moore and Jago Cooper
Joy Like Time - John Kenneth Paranada
Glorious, Convulsive Frivolity: Wild Play - Ben Highmore
Gods, Heroes and Kings at Play: Games in Human Societies - Sam Tacconi
Living by the Rule - Ed Krcma and Jessica Barker
Libby Heaney: Life in the Multiverse - Rosy Gray
Acknowledgements
Author biographies
Picture credits
Notes
Index
Introduction - Tania Moore and Jago Cooper
Joy Like Time - John Kenneth Paranada
Glorious, Convulsive Frivolity: Wild Play - Ben Highmore
Gods, Heroes and Kings at Play: Games in Human Societies - Sam Tacconi
Living by the Rule - Ed Krcma and Jessica Barker
Libby Heaney: Life in the Multiverse - Rosy Gray
Acknowledgements
Author biographies
Picture credits
Notes
Index