Residents asked to paint their own picture of market town

The unusual exhibition, which will open at Beverley Guildhall next month, is being billed as “an innovative community museum experiment”.

‘My Beverley’ seeks to gather people’s memories of the town and is asking them to contribute their own photos and words.

Apart from a few boards headed with topics including “where I lived” and “where I worked”, the gallery will be bare, but it should fill up as it evolves over the months.

Guildhall curator Fiona Jenkinson said she hoped people would give short anecdotes, “pithy soundbites” and interesting objects.

She said: “We got this idea from a gallery in America where they were trying to engage visitors in the creative process by opening an empty gallery and supplying materials for people to create their own art. Here we are looking for stories, memories and artefacts.

“I am feeling very nervous but am hoping it will fire people’s imaginations and they do come and add things – otherwise it’s not going to work at all. I did make sure that the chairman of the council and the Mayor knew that they were going to be opening an empty gallery.”

Refreshments will be supplied throughout the opening day on November 8, starting at 10.30am.

Ms Jenkinson added: “We hope that people will come along with a few photographs that can be scanned straight away and added to the walls, and tell us a few anecdotes about their life in Beverley. Hopefully the first additions will spark further memories so that more people will come along on future Fridays and add to the display.”

The Guildhall opens every Friday from 10am to 4pm. The exhibition will run until March 28.