National Play Day 2025: Celebrating Spaces for Play

This National Play Day we are asking: How do play and the spaces we create shape our everyday lives? 

At Orleans House Gallery, we believe that play and imagination are central to all our lives. Play isn’t just for children, it’s for everyone. And in 2026, we are bringing that belief to life in a bold new way. 

We’re thrilled to announce a new public exhibition opening at Orleans House Gallery in April 2026. This isn’t just an ordinary exhibition though. It will be a playful, evolving space co-created by artists Abigail Hunt, Lucy McDonald, and Matt Shaw, collaborating with Age UK Richmond, St Richard’s Primary School, Curious Tots, Achieving for Children and some of our wonderful volunteers. 

Together, they will shape ideas, materials, and artworks that will transform Orleans House Gallery into an evolving, dynamic, interactive space that grows and shifts with every visitor. A space where families, friends, and people of all ages can explore, experiment, and play together across generations. A space to celebrate creativity that doesn’t age. 

Throughout the exhibition’s run, the artists will continue to build and adapt the art. The artists will be inviting you to take part, to add, to imagine, to create. This will be a living exhibition, not just made for you, but with you. 

So, this National Play Day, we are inviting you to answer the question: 

What does your perfect space for play look like? 

Abigail Hunt, Lucy McDonald and Matt Shaw have worked individually and collaboratively as practicing artists, facilitators, producers and researchers on a wide range of projects, workshops, community engagements and events with people across all ages. They are experienced play experts, with an extensive knowledge and collective experience working in and with communities, galleries, museums and public spaces. 

 Abigail’s art practice explores form, risk taking and possibility and often involves creating and curating spaces to enable things to happen, trusting in the process of knowing that something will. 

Lucy’s creative practice considers themes of connection, creative play, games, nature, memory making and joy, underpinned by the belief that art has the power to positively impact wellbeing, especially through social engagement. 

 Matt describes himself as a ‘collaborative space maker’ with a playful and creative curiosity towards materials and technology. He is interested in empowering spaces through the use of simple everyday materials. 

Between them, these artists have worked on projects and commissions with Tate, National Trust, Whitechapel Gallery, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Compton Verney, Young V&A, National Gallery and Royal Museums Greenwich.