Room to Breathe

Room to Breathe is a new exhibition at the Migration Museum, taking visitors on an immersive journey into the personal and communal spaces created by migrants in Britain from the early 20th century to the present day.

Journey through a series of rooms – from a bedroom to a classroom, a kitchen to a barber’s shop – in which over 100 unique personal stories of creating a home, finding work, navigating hardships, making friends and forming communities are brought to life through films, audio, photographs and personal objects.

By opening drawers, picking objects off shelves or settling into an armchair, visitors will discover stories from over 100 people, including Windrush-era arrivals from the Caribbean, NHS workers from across the world, refugee arrivals from the 1930s to the present day, as well as chefs, students, artists, teachers, entrepreneurs and musicians.

The exhibition will also serve as a setting for monthly residencies by refugee and migrant artists, as well as a varied programme of events and activities, from cookery classes to flash performances, storytelling evenings to art and craft workshops.

Room to Breathe is the latest exhibition at the Migration Museum, which shines a light on the many ways in which the movement of people to and from Britain over the centuries has made us who we are today – as individuals, as communities and as a nation.

It's our most immersive exhibition to date, using technology and installations to showcase a wide range of personal stories from people of all ages and backgrounds that we hope, as with our previous exhibitions No Turning Back: Seven Migration Moments that Changed Britain and Call Me By My Name: Stories from Calais and Beyond, can humanise and creatively explore the topic of migration that is so often discussed in terms of numbers, policies and economic cost-benefit.