Museum of Edinburgh will open two new exhibitions this month that highlight the diversity of the Capital and sharing the artwork, collections, and stories of people in and around Edinburgh.
Local Foreigners: the human face of immigration, 11 March – 10 September 2023
Local Foreigners challenges negative stereotypes of immigration. The exhibition features portraits and the stories of 12 people who have moved to the Capital from other countries. Each person has also chosen a cherished object to display.
Local Foreigners is a project by author and photographer, Maryna Sulym. As an immigrant from Ukraine, she wanted to tackle the negative representations of immigrants as victims or threat in the media. She started the project to spread awareness of the diversity and complexity of immigration.
Local Foreigners aims to present immigrants as locals by showing that they have everyday problems, families, hobbies, study and work. More information can be found on the project website: Local Foreigners.
Visitors will also have an opportunity to share their own stories about migration.
Front PAGE Views, 25 March – 25 June 2023
This photography exhibition is brought to the Museum of Edinburgh by the Photo Arts Group Empowerment (PAGE) project run by Access to Industry, a third sector organisation that supports people facing complex barriers to employment. The group has taken part in a photography course in partnership with STILLS Centre for Photography. This exhibition showcases photographs taken during and after the course using spaces and techniques that the group couldn’t normally access.
The PAGE project has involved clients from mixed social and cultural backgrounds who have and are facing barriers to progression in the Capital due to their personal circumstances. The result of this partnership is an uplifting exhibition which celebrates the courage, creativity, and diversity of the people of Edinburgh.
Councillor Val Walker, Culture and Communities Convener, said:
With these exciting new exhibitions it’s a fantastic time to visit or rediscover the Museum of Edinburgh, with its maze of 16th century buildings and historic rooms filled with iconic objects from the Capital’s past. It is the story of our city and these two new exhibitions are a great fit.
The new exhibitions promise to challenge and educate visitors on the experiences of our fellow citizens. I love that the contributions to both Local Foreigners and Front PAGE views have come from the people of Edinburgh and I hope visitors can draw inspiration from their stories and see that we are all welcome in Edinburgh’s cultural spaces. We are from all around the world, but together, we are Edinburgh.
Ria Sloan, Outreach and Access Manager, added:
These exhibitions form part of Museums & Galleries Edinburgh’s commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. We want all residents to feel a sense of ownership of their history and culture and we aim to have a more inclusive range of voices mainstreamed and represented in our exhibitions and programmes.