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（Photo by Sienna, Museum of Oxford)
On March 25, 2025, a special cultural engagement event centered on everyday objects from the Chinese immigrant community was held at the Museum of Oxford. Jointly organized by the Museum and the cultural organization Muzim-Art4Connect, the event was themed “Stories of Objects Across the Sea: From China to Oxford,” and brought together community voices and cross-cultural dialogue.
Jenny Wang, founder of Muzim-Art4Connect, opened the oral storytelling session by sharing the story of a Bai-style carved wooden teapot she collected during her fieldwork years ago in China. Throughout the event, over 20 participants brought in meaningful objects that carried family memories and cultural emotions—ranging from cloth shoes, brush holders, family letters, fossils, books, teapots, paintings, interview documentaries to various handmade crafts. Each story shared revealed authentic experiences across time and space, touching on themes such as migration, intergenerational memory, and identity.
Councillor Mike Rowley, Mayor of Oxford, attended the entire event and delivered a warm speech. He emphasized the importance of multiculturalism to the city’s history and future, and praised the active engagement of the Chinese community. Beth Jones, Public Engagement and Exhibitions Officer at the Museum of Oxford, guided participants in creating exhibition labels for their objects. These labels will be featured in a collective exhibition to be held in April.
This event marked an important part of the Museum of Oxford’s 50th Anniversary Celebration Series, and was also the first session of Muzim-Art4Connect’s 2025 “ Museum Dialogues”. Importantly, the precious stories shared during the event will be archived in the Museum’s oral history collection, becoming a lasting part of Oxford’s public memory and contributing a valuable cultural legacy for the Chinese community in the UK.
As a follow-up to this event, on May 20, the Museum of Oxford will again collaborate with Muzim-Art4Connect to host a large-scale community art-making event inspired by the objects and stories. Participants will create visual representations of their personal story-objects, which will be exhibited in the museum and preserved as a permanent record of community cultural contributions.
Muzim-Art4Connect is dedicated to promoting deeper and sustained participation of the Chinese diaspora in museums across the UK through storytelling, artistic practices, community engagement, and traditional festival celebrations.