Yorkshire Contemporary and Leeds Libraries are delighted to announce that artists Joanne Tatham & Tom O’Sullivan will develop a major new commission for the Children’s Library at Leeds Central Library.
The commission will create a new artist-designed environment for children aged 0-11 and their families, integrating storytelling, shared reading, imaginative play and social interaction in bold and unexpected ways. The project is part of the wider ground floor Central Library redevelopment, and will launch in Autumn 2026.
Leeds Central Library, a Grade II* listed building, first opened in 1884, plays a vital civic and cultural role in the city. The Children’s Library welcomes hundreds of families each week for Story & Rhyme sessions, school visits, quiet reading, creative play and digital learning.
In recent years, Stephanie Jefferies’ Tiny Totley Studio, first commissioned by Yorkshire Contemporary in 2022, has demonstrated the transformative power of artist-created play spaces. Since relocating to the Central Library in 2024, the space received more than 45,000 visits, significantly increasing footfall and deepening engagement with families across Leeds.
Recognising the value of this resource, a brief for a new Children’s Library was developed through consultation with families and other stakeholders, embedding what was loved about Tiny Totley Studio and a love of books into our plans to create an inclusive and imaginative new space. The commission will be larger than the previous installation, occupying over twice the space Tiny Totley Studio previously held.
For this new Children’s Library commission, Joanne Tatham & Tom O’Sullivan will bring their distinctive visual language and playful criticality, creating an environment that invites children and families into a shared space for reading, play and reimagining. Working across sculpture, architecture, text, performance and installation, they re-stage motifs drawn from visual culture, from pyramids to cartoon-like animals, creating spaces that provoke curiosity, humour and reflection. Both artists have strong links to Leeds; Tatham was born in West Yorkshire and completed doctoral research at the University of Leeds, whilst O’Sullivan completed his BA in Fine Art at the University of Leeds. Together, they were shortlisted for the Northern Art Prize, exhibited at Leeds Art Gallery in 2013.
The Children’s Library commission for Leeds Central Library continues Yorkshire Contemporary’s commitment to ambitious, accessible and free artist-authored projects that value play as a serious force for learning and joy. Working with Leeds Libraries, we are delighted to be creating something bold, joyful and unexpected, a place where stories are not only read, but experienced. Opening Autumn 2026, it forms part of the Leeds 400 celebrations in the UK’s National Year of Reading.
The Children’s Library commission for Leeds Central Library is a partnership between Leeds Libraries and Yorkshire Contemporary, funded by Leeds City Council and Arts Council England.
Image Credit: Joanne Tatham & Tom O’Sullivan. Is this what brings things into focus, 2017, Installation view, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, 2017, Courtesy of The Artists and The Modern Institute/ Toby Webster Ltd., Glasgow. Photo: Lance Gerber
About Joanne Tatham & Tom O’Sullivan
Joanne Tatham & Tom O’Sullivan make work that questions how contemporary art behaves and is understood. Using recurring motifs like pyramids, standing stones and cartoon-like animals—across sculpture, painting, architecture, text and performance—they rework images and ideas from art and visual culture. Their work creates subtle shifts and disruptions that invite audiences into moments of thoughtful, sometimes uneasy reflection.
Tatham and O’Sullivan have presented work internationally for over three decades, with recent projects including The Digbeth Cylinder at Eastside Projects (2026), a major commission in Shanghai (2022), and a permanent commission at Studio Voltaire (2021). Their work has been shown in public and institutional contexts such as Coachella (2017), Festival 2018 in Glasgow, and Turner Contemporary.
They represented Scotland at the Venice Biennale (2005) and were shortlisted for the Northern Art Prize (2013). Their work is held in major collections including the British Council, Arts Council England and MoMA, New York
About Leeds Central Library
Leeds Central Library is a Grade II* listed public building, opening in 1884. Today, it plays a vital civic and cultural role in the lives of families, schools, artists, readers and communities across Leeds.
