The story of refugee artists travelling to Wales is told in a new installation opening in Cardiff this weekend, curated by director and scenographer Pamela Howard OBE

A brand new installation opens in Cardiff this weekend to document the poignant journeys made to Wales by émigré artists, performers and musicians throughout history. Welcome to Wales – a mix of visual art, video and live performances – celebrates the many individuals who make Cardiff the place it is today, including ancestors of the exhibition's curator, Professor Pamela Howard OBE. She brings all her creative skills (including directing, scenography, writing and teaching) to the installation, which is a collaboration between Howard and students of Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama (RWCMD), of which she is International Chair of Drama, as well as students from Tel Aviv.

So how did it all begin? 'God Knows Where' as it happens, a song by British musician Daniel Cainer. The video for the song features footage of refugees arriving somewhere unknown on a boat, fleeing their countries of origin to a foreign place and not knowing where they are. Howard was especially inspired hearing Cainer sing the line, ‘waiting for their stories to unfold’. "There’s a Hebrew proverb," she explains, "[that states] it’s your responsibility to tell the same story from generation to generation. If you can’t tell them the story, then how can they know?"

Howard and the student designers and composers recreate the stories of the many refugee creatives who have been welcomed to Wales. Alongside the displays, live performances will take place every morning and evening throughout the exhibition, featuring actors Sian Phillips and Frank Barrie, RWCMD students and members of the local community.

"This project is designed to help others tell their stories in as positive and creative a way as possible," says Howard, who is a descendant of Eastern European émigrés. "I started with telling my own story, but my aim is to make this installation universal. The stories can be shared among anyone who comes in to take part."

Interaction with the local community was always intended to be a focal point of the project, which is aimed at families, teenagers and older people. Upon entering the show, visitors will be given a map that takes them on a journey around the exhibits – "from the dark to the light" – which include paintings on recycled cardboard, a performance space for music and actors, and a few surprises.

By Judi Herman & Danielle Goldstein

Welcome to Wales runs Sunday 24 – Saturday 30 March. FREE. The Old Library, Cardiff, CF10 1BH. rwcmd.ac.uk/events/pamela-howard-welcome-to-wales