Murmuration Arts’ Marion Duggan on ‘Nightlight Lullabies’ and how Deaf stories are lighting up Derby Museum and Art Gallery (BSL)

Posted on October 27, 2025 by



Here at Murmuration Arts we have worked with communities across the UK – including Brighton, Stockton, Derby, Crawley, and Peterborough – to co-create original lullabies with local mothers.

Watch this article in BSL below, signed by Donna Mullings, or scroll down to continue in English

These workshops offer a unique opportunity for mothers to connect, reflect on their journey into motherhood, and support their mental health and wellbeing in a nurturing, creative space.

Through gentle games, self-care activities, journaling, and creative writing, we create a warm and inclusive environment where mothers can share experiences and find support among peers.

Each workshop is led by an experienced facilitator and a local singer-songwriter. Together, they guide participants through creative writing exercises and informal conversations — often over tea — to help shape personal and meaningful lullabies.

The mothers’ voices are captured on a dictaphone and woven into the music by our Sound Designer. Each finished lullaby is professionally recorded and gifted to the family, offering a beautiful, lasting legacy of their experience.

Over the last 21 months, our Nightlight Lullabies project has brought together more than 150 Derby parents. Through workshops at ArtCore, Derby Museum, and local family hubs, deaf and hearing parents were invited to come together to share stories of bedtime rituals — sung, signed, and tactile — reflecting the city’s diversity.

All of the oral histories gathered from this will be archived in the Derbyshire Record Office, and all the BSL films in the Media Archive for Central England (MACE). This means that families’ stories and signs will be preserved for future generations to see and hear.

For me personally, this project is about connection. It looks at the connection between Deaf and hearing families, between parent and child, and also between language, touch, and care.

There’s something truly magical about seeing a story signed, shared, and experienced in this glowing, playful space and I would love for you to see the exhibition if you’re in the Derby area.

If you go along to Derby Museum and Art Gallery for Nightlight Lullabies, you will see how we have turned the space into a little world of dreams. You can climb on a glowing crescent moon, curl up beside a giant daffodil lamp and even lie on bean bags beneath a huge rotating mobile.

It’s a free, immersive exhibition designed to be a warm, comforting space for families of all kinds and celebrates the magic of bedtime, and the many ways parents and carers help babies drift off to sleep.

For Derby, we’ve created two brand-new works: A Lullaby for Derby, inspired by creative writing workshops with local parents and also presented in signed song.

Secondly, The Signing Mother – A Visual Vernacular for Derby, a film showing how Deaf parents comfort their babies using sign, touch, and movement.

This second piece was made with students from the Royal School for the Deaf Derby, D-Youth Hub, and Action Deafness, highlighting the creative ways Deaf families connect with their little ones. You can watch it inside a giant daffodil-shaped bedside lamp — it’s pretty magical!

On Thursday 30 October, local storyteller Donna Mullings will also be running a special event as she brings stories to life in British Sign Language.

Donna is a Deaf actress and BSL consultant, and she also runs the Deaf Youth Theatre at Derby Theatre. She’ll be performing for two age groups: ages 0–5: from 10.30–11.30am and then ages 6–10: 1.30–2.30pm

It’s a free drop-in, family-friendly event that is fully accessible, with lifts, baby changing, café, and nursing welcome — we hope you can come along and enjoy!

Donna Mullings shares a BSL video about her storytelling event here.

Nightlight Lullabies is currently running at Derby Museum and Art Gallery until 1st November, with a special BSL storytelling event taking place on 30th October. To find out more about Murmuration Arts see here.  

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Posted in: Marion Duggan, Site posts