I’m very conscious that I’ve not mentioned that the CiB shop opened on Thursday night. It did and it looks ace – even better than I hoped it would.
Things have been quite busy (to say the least), so I’ll do a proper post with thanks and links and photos and all sorts later. If you’ve been in touch about getting involved then I’ll be in touch as soon as I can.
For now, we’re on Bullring’s top floor on the West Mall (Debenhams side). Please, come on down and say hello (and buy something)!
Birmingham have made the shortlist for 2013 City of Culture along with Norwich, Derry/Londonderry and Sheffield. Which is a shame cos I had a tenner on Durham*.
Fingers crossed though, overall I think this would be a good thing.
I’ve still no idea what went into the bid, other than some blandness in the DCMS statement that says:
the panel was influenced by the expected step change each city was asked to envisage, if they gained the title and subsequent media spotlight.
“It was a hard choice but also heartening that all bidders had recognised the power of culture to bring people together; to work collectively within existing resources for a common goal and bring into being networks that may not have existed before.
So, a step change. Cool.
I’m not sure what sort of profile the campaign’s been having in the city – I know canvasbirmingham.com has been seeing some good action and saw some flyers the others day (at the council house – I wonder if they found it hard finding places to put them around town). A vid from the launch night came out the other week too:
City of Culture Bid Launch from Big City Blank Canvas on Vimeo.
*No, of course I didn’t.
Birmingham-born artist Reuben Colley opens his own gallery in Moseley this month. The gallery will be showcase talent from past greats including L. S. Lowry and Sir William Russell Flint RA to contemporary masters such as James Byrne and new talent.
He says his aim is to create an environment where people can come and spend time being stimulated by art rather than purely being sold a wall adornment. Here’s some more from Reuben:
I had become so disillusioned with the contemporary art world which surrounded me that I was ready to hang up my brushes, and it was only after involvement with Birmingham Art Museum that my passion was reinvigorated.
Reuben received help from Birmingham City Council’s Retail Development Programme to open Reuben Colley Fine Arts Gallery.
From the Sustain fund but still, an award’s an award, innit?
Arts Council England has made a seventh round of awards from its £40 million Sustain fund for organisations under pressure as a result of the recession.
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra:
The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra’s application met the Sustain criteria as the Orchestra has been adversely impacted by the recession. As such, we have offered a Sustain award of £388,000 to maintain the quality of artistic output and resolve immediate cash flow problems caused by loss of development income and touring income.
Warwick Arts Centre:
Elements of Warwick Arts Centre’s application have been judged to meet the Sustain criteria. As such, we have offered a Sustain award of £215,000 to help the organisation with the adverse impact of the recession by maintaining the quality of artistic output and resolve immediate cash flow problems caused by loss of income from box office, trusts and foundations.
Spotted via Audiences Central.
In other news, the Arts Council get their website redesigned and then go hiding all their information in Word docs, PDF’s and Excel spreadsheets. Irritating.
Mother India weekend at Town Hall and Symphony Hall Birmingham will be a journey through the musical heritage of India over 9-11 April, taking in the mystic heights of classical traditions via Anglo-Indian classical fusion to cutting-edge contemporary Asian remixes.
The weekend’s musical journey starts at the pinnacle of Mother India’s classical tradition, with a rare UK recital by santoor maestro and living legend Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Then we encounter a younger generation of Indian musicians, Amaan and Ayaan Ali Khan. These gifted sarod players come from a distinguished classical lineage, but here they take the ancient classical tradition of Mother India on an East-West cross-cultural journey in collaboration with young British cellist Matthew Barley. Finally, we come right up-to-date in a cutting-edge event when young British-Asian artist DJ Tigerstyle explores his heritage and re-visions Mother India, a classic of Indian cinema, in contemporary idiom.
For tickets and more information check out the Town Hall & Symphony Hall website here.
The REP have a new section for families on their website. It’s got vids and such on it, like this one showing how to make a toy theatre:
In fact, two invitations and a slight apology.
Invitation 1 – THE GRAND OPENING
On Thursday 25 February at 5pm the shutters will be raised for the first time. As well as the chance to have a poke around and sample the merchandise, there’ll be some gentle tuneage from Sister 45 and Colour. Maybe some other stuff if I can sort it out too.
Everyone’s welcome and so are your friends. There are no invites or anything – its a shop after all. We’re closing at 8pm as per (what will be) usual.
Directions – go through the glass doors behind the bull and we’re just on the left hand side (top floor, Debenhams side of Bullring).
Invitation 2 – The Big Sort Out
Tomorrow I’ll be cleaning the unit and painting the walls. There’s quite a lot to do. If anyone can spare some time to help (and a few have already volunteered) then that would be fantastic. Feel free to turn up any time after 11am – just knock on the shutters and I’ll let you in. If you could bring a paint roller and tray too that would be great. Please leave a comment below so I know whether to expect you.
I can’t offer much in return, but I’ll sort out some refreshments at the very least.
The apology
Hopefully you’ll appreciate that things have been rather hectic trying to pull everything together in time. I’ve not been able to reply to everyone who’s offered help, stock, ideas for events, etc. I’m sorry about that and you should hear back from me in the next 24 hours or so.
As a guide the answer to most stuff is ‘yes’ unless you’re asking for me to provide any funding.
Aspiring writers might be interested in a series of workshops run by the region’s writing agency Script. Here’s some detail:
This series of workshops is aimed at writers who would like to develop their skills and learn the tools of the trade. With topics ranging from laying out your screenplay, to writing sitcom, animation, and feature film genres, the programme offers a wide variety of opportunities for writers to hone their skills with input and support from writers and producers currently working in the industry.
For more information on the workshops, which are being run in association with Screen WM, check out the Script website here. The workshops are £50 each, but there’s also a deal, so if you book any four workshops at the full rate, you can receive a 15% discount off the total price.
From a cursory search, this video doesn’t seem to have been featured on CiB before. This is me rectifying that.
Domestica are based in Moseley and they sell white goods. The video they made to promote themselves is just wonderful:
Lady and Small are the craft-y duo who made the lovely Christmas cards for our wonderful, cherished CiB Supporters (come for the cheap advertising, stay for the extra perks).
Anyway, in return for their handmade card assembling skills I showed them how the internet works. They’ve since turned into some of the most amusing writers in my RSS reader. For example:
Inspired by Frisky and her corsetted partners in crime (you know, Dita Von Teese, Bettie Page, etc) Me and Lady are getting all serious about burlesque – making accessories obviously not sitting in giant champagne glasses in our best knickers. Honestly, what do you take us for?
I know what you’re thinking, ‘but Small, Lady talks about designing for chaps and now you’re scaring us with your burlesque frippery’.
Calm yourselves, our world is a world where tweed and leather walk hand in hand, skipping gently down the road together until they find the nearest cocktail bar. At this point, leather slinks off towards the stage to bust a few moves while tweed blushes in the corner.
Don’t worry, we know what we are doing.
Each month ARC invites regional guest curators to present an exhibition of works at The Vaults in the Jewellery Quarter. TROVE gallery are kicking off ARC’s 2010 programme with a free exhibition at The Vaults on 24th February, 6-8pm for one night only.
The Vaults Bazaar brings together a selection of regional and national artists that TROVE invited to take part in this exhibition. Each offering a different proposal of work, each vault will be different from classic painting through film to performance, a truly bizarre mix.
Artists on show on the 24th will include Jane Ball, Graham Chorlton, Coco DeVille, Caitlin Griffiths, Daniel Lehan, Bigid McLeer, Milk,Two Sugars, Paul Newman, Elizabeth Short and Steve Varndell.
David Bintley’s good at these pieces to camera. Here he is announcing the ballet’s 20th anniversary season – favourites from over the years and a new production of Cinderella.
Prices have been frozen for this year, get in quick, etc and so on.
A couple of eagle-eyed people noticed that the design of the CiB Twitter page changed a week or two back. Now the main site proper has been given a going over.
Thanks to the folks at Substrakt for doing this, especially Claire and Ryan who put in the most hours.
This is the fourth change of clothes Created in Birmingham has had. For a trip down memory lane (courtesy of the Wayback Machine), here’s a reminder for long-time readers of how the site looked back when it first started:
Facebook event here. Copy and pasted info here:
The ‘SUR-FACE’ exhibition represents a visual response to the word ‘surface’. The theme captures the essence of the exhibition as the ambiguities of the word ‘surface’ allows for wider expression and interpretation of the concept.
Saranjit Birdi: Explores social dynamics of territory and freedom through the surface of a life-size, action-painting installation combined with dance, movement and mark making as an art form.
Live performance of ‘Paint Box’ 7pm at Private View with special guest WINSTON NELSON – Former UK Kickboxing champion
Marie-Claire Calatraba: focusing on ink drawing techniques, deconstruction and reconstruction of images, re-working layers, development of detailed layered drawings and built-up surfaces.
Karen McLean: questions what lies beneath the surface in an installation that interrogates the historical and contemporary evolution of African Caribbean kinship and the marginality of the father figure.
Janice Talifero: demonstrates the use of protective surfaces in contemporary art like animal coats, skins and feathers, use of latex, colour and spatial aspects of large format abstract paintings.
The private view is on 23 Feb from 5.30-9pm but presumably, unless you’ve been specifically invited, you shouldn’t go along to that because you’re not wanted. Maybe go some other time instead.
