Migrant Art Archive

a large and vibrant mural of two intense, striking blue eyes. Between the eyes, there is a painted flower with green and red petals

Migrant Art Archive

Welcome to the Migrant Art Archive, a digital space devoted to migrant self-representation and to migration research projects that use arts-based methods to explore experiences of migration. The featured project below, Covid Chronicles from the Margins documents pandemic experiences among asylum-seekers, refugees, migrant workers, and undocumented individuals. Their stories and images not only represent the pandemic from a unique vantage point but also serve as an introduction to the broader Migrant Art Archive research initiative at The Open University and to the other inspiring arts-based migration projects below.

Featured project: Covid Chronicles from the Margins

shows a collage of four smaller images. Top left: a hand-drawn sketch titled 'Entrapment', featuring a figure curled up in a fetal position, surrounded by overlapping angular lines creating a sense of confinement or tension. Top right: an image of a young person with a black mask with an "X" symbol on it titled 'Anguish', their face is partially painted green with small virus-like symbols, they wear a light blue shirt and have a concerned expression. Bottom left: A person standing triumphantly on a rock with their arms spread wide, titled 'Freedom Air'. They are dressed in casual dark clothing and are set against a clear blue sky. Bottom right: A colorful mural depicting a large, monstrous, virus-like creature preying over a city, with keyworkers standing in position to defend

We invite you to explore the Covid Chronicles Archive, where you’ll find artworks and writings by migrant contributors from across the world using smartphones to share their pandemic stories.

The Exhibition displays creative works under common themes. 

The Blog section offers a range of insightful reflective writings.

Lastly, the Research section brings academic papers and policy briefings together to create social and policy impact.

Other arts-based migration projects

Below you will find details of a range of Open University migration research projects that use arts-based methods.

DEPA

Decolonising Education for Peace in Africa (DEPA)

The Decolonising Education for Peace in Africa (DEPA) project is a Arts and Humanities Research Council and UKRI-funded Network Plus project, led by The Open University. DEPA sought to flip the prevailing historic narrative of Africa as a continent marred by conflict, violence and war by starting with the focus on peace. DEPA achieved this by exploring the overlooked knowledges and values that underpin peace in African communities. Then to ask, how can these knowledges be connected and compared across countries to inform pedagogy and create curriculum content that decolonises how we can educate for peace, in Africa and beyond.

NEW ABC

Networking the Educational World: Across Boundaries for Community-building (NEW ABC)

Ongoing migratory mobilities means that more children and young people migrate to new countries and learn to navigate novel sociopolitical, cultural, and educational settings. Often such transitions may impact children and young people’s well-being, as they may face processes of othering, bullying or social exclusion. Art and creative storytelling have the potential to connect, transform, and co-create new bridges for dialogue and connection, while supporting the articulation of personal experiences, feelings, and thoughts.

PASAR

Participation Arts and Social Action in Research - PASAR

The project creates a model for bringing together practitioners and marginalized groups to engage with each other through creative methods and innovates by developing a toolkit for training social researchers in participatory methods, specifically walking stories and theatre.