A new pop-up event at a Coventry gallery is encouraging residents to add to the hundreds of messages celebrating the city’s South Asian communities left at a groundbreaking exhibition.

Stories That Made Us - Roots, Resilience, Representation has captured over 300 handwritten memories of migration, racism and belonging from visitors since opening at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum in November 2025.

A new pop-up event series, Our Stories and Heritage, will be hosted by the Herbert from Monday 6 April to Thursday 9 April featuring creative workshops, talks and tours to give more visitors the chance to share their memories, photographs and have their artwork and oral histories showcased as part of the Stories That Made Us project.

The immersive exhibition, which runs until Monday 25 May, tells the story of the Virk family from 1968 to 2010, using immersive rooms, oral histories, film, music and a 410-year timeline of South Asian and British history.

Visitors move through four meticulously recreated room settings including Passport Control, Living Room, Bedroom and Radio Station, before being invited to leave their own reflection, which has become one of the most powerful elements of the exhibition.

The pop-up programme, which is free to attend with entry fee to the Herbert and designed to encourage more South Asian families to contribute their experiences, begins on Easter Monday with a South Asian-themed poetry workshop led by poet Dev, followed by a live spoken-word performance and a community open mic event celebrating South Asian culture.

On Tuesday 7 April, visitors will be able to record their own oral histories with Coventry Archives as part of a series of drop-in sessions. Activities continue on Wednesday 8 April with an artist-led masterclass exploring storytelling through portraits, letters and audio messages inspired by South Asian family traditions.

The programme concludes on Thursday 9 April with a hands-on archive workshop exploring the Virk Collection, alongside curator tours offering deeper insight into the exhibition.

The reflections left so far highlight the significance of seeing South Asian experiences represented in a major public space, while others reflected on the lasting impact of racism, alongside the strength of community and shared cultural experiences.

The reflections of the exhibition include:

• “At times I felt like I was stepping into my own childhood… My parents have sadly passed and the stories went with them. I urge anyone who still has their parents, listen to their stories… so you have something to pass down to the next generation.”

• “Never has a museum moved me so much… the racism, the domestic violence, the 80s music, fashion, fun - everything in our story.”

• “I walked around the corner to the bedroom and… instant goosebumps. It was literally walking into my memory.”

The exhibition draws on curator and artist Hardish Virk’s ‘Stories That Made Us’ Collection and Coventry Archives’ ‘Virk Collection’, showcasing photographs, books, magazines, posters, vinyl records, cassettes and personal memorabilia alongside oral histories, radio broadcasts, music and film that bring the South Asian experience to life.

Hardish said the response highlights the importance of recognising the contribution and presence of South Asian communities in the city, and reflects Coventry’s identity as a city shaped by migration, where nearly one in five residents identifies as Asian or Asian British - twice the national average (2021 Census).

Hardish said: “The heart of the exhibition is my family’s story, but what we’re seeing is that people are finding their own story in it. We’ve had people from different generations and different backgrounds who recognise something of themselves, whether that’s in the bedroom or living room, or through music, books and other memorabilia.

“A lot of the feedback references the experiences my parents’ generation faced when they first arrived and the legacy of that, the institutional racism, the racism on the streets and the divisive language that was used then, which we’re seeing again in society today.

“But it’s also shown a real sense that we’re stronger together, and it’s been really powerful to see people connect with that idea and find their own place in the story... These pop-up events are designed to give more people the chance to add their perspective and build on the incredible testimonies we’ve heard over the last few months.”

Stories That Made Us - Roots, Resilience, Representation is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players.

For more information about the Our Stories and Heritage pop up exhibition visit the website.