A growing number of artists have begun to explore issues relating to climate change and its effects, using their artwork to stimulate debate and create a call to action. While scientists can struggle to communicate[…]
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Travel + art | A bike tour (crash) of Tuscany
“Before we get going, I need to explain my rules”. Ten of us, positioned atop rented bikes, are about to begin a cycling tour of Tuscany. We have congregated on a smooth, paved terrace, which[…]
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BE Festival @ The REP | Volunteering & host opportunities
BE FESTIVAL is back! Once again the festival – which turns the notion of conventional theatre upside down – is looking for volunteers and hosts. The festival has some fantastic opportunities to get involved and,[…]
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11 reasons why | Birmingham is the best city in the UK for emerging artists
Birmingham, a city famed for its canals, curry houses and distinct dialect, has not historically been celebrated for culture. However, during the last few years there has been a noticeable shift in the second city’s[…]
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Creative café culture | Birmingham’s most bohemian coffee shops
If you’re like me, you need a strong cappuccino, sometimes two, to wake up. When I get writer’s block, I also find that my flat is the worst place for inspiration. Instead, I prefer to[…]
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Pay day | 8 unique gifts for art & culture lovers
If you’re like me, sometimes the best bit about a trip to a museum or gallery is the shop (closely followed by the café). I used to work with a woman who admitted she would[…]
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Art History | Emmy Bridgwater: Surrealist swans & strange lands
Swans, ravens, hybrid bird-women: these are the creatures of Emmy Bridgwater’s enigmatic, Surrealist artworks. Bridgwater (1906 – 1999) was one of the five founding members of the Birmingham Surrealist Group. However, her influence and connections[…]
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Interview | Meet Danny Howes: Portrait Artist of the Year Finalist 2018
Danny Howes is one of Birmingham’s best realist painters. His large-scale canvases document contemporary life and people from the region, reflecting the vibrant, diverse and multi-cultural city in which we live. I first saw Danny’s[…]
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Happy Birthday | Ikon Gallery turns 20!
Birmingham’s Ikon Gallery is turning 20! To celebrate, the gallery is opening its new exhibitions on 21st March, exactly 20 years to the day since the gallery doors were first opened to the public in Brindleyplace[…]
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Artist in focus | Georgina Gaskin: in the English garden
During the late 19th and early 20th century Birmingham was at the centre of the jewellery trade in the UK. It was also a centre for the Arts and Crafts Movement, with artists drawing inspiration[…]
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