Tate Liverpool is shining the spotlight on refugees this weekend through a series of talks

This weekend marks the end of the latest instalment of the Tate Liverpool Home from Home programme.

The 8-week programme by Tate Liverpool is aimed at bridging local migrant communities with the wider cultural offerings of the city, employing Tate’s collection as a learning tool and knowledge exchange. Their work will be celebrated on Saturday 27 May with a series of talks in the gallery led by the group as they act as guides sharing their own impressions on their chosen artworks from the collection display.

The latest instalment of Home from Home was launched as part of EuroFestival, and has seen over a dozen refugees from Ukraine taking part. The scheme’s main goal is to assist refugees, asylum seekers, and vulnerable migrants in finding their footing within the Liverpool City Region.

Each of the sessions seeks to make the city’s cultural offer more accessible to migrant communities and remove conventional hurdles. The programme’s objectives include enhancing the self-confidence of participants, and visual literacy through the creative arts. It also aims to reduce the feelings of isolation often faced by migrants by expanding their social connections and networks in the city region.

Throughout the Home from Home programme, participants have had the chance to delve into Tate’s diverse collection. They have been identifying artworks in the gallery that resonate with them, allowing for a deeper connection with the art. Through engaging in creative activities such as drawing, sound sketching, folklore art, and craft making the group enhanced their confidence in speaking about their chosen artwork fluently.

The programme combines artistic practice, English language exercises and drama games to enable a level of trust from which to gain self-expression. This not only bolsters their confidence in speaking about their chosen artwork, but also allows them to offer personal insights that frequently link back to their own experiences.

To culminate this edition of Home from Home, participants will have the opportunity to showcase what they’ve learnt and experienced during the programme on Saturday 27 May. The group will act as guides, delivering public talk responding to an artwork from Tate’s collection, (in their own language and English), and introducing artworks from their home country.

Find out more on the Tate Liverpool website here.