Created in Birmingham

The second UK Fulldome Film Festival will take place on Sat 12 & Sun 13 March at the Thinktank Planetarium.

The festival examines fulldome as an artistic media, and highlights ‘the creative and experimental applications of immersive environments, beyond the realm of astronomy education most commonly associated with digital planetariums today’.

They’ve got a pretty full programme, with shorts and feature screenings and sessions running from 9am – 9pm on the Sat and 9am – 7pm on Sun.

Sessions will provide discussion, presentations and workshops based around providing an insight into the processes and challenges of Fulldome content production, from both a conceptual and technical view.

There’s also a special schedule of screenings which will be free to Thinktank ticket holders over the weekend.

Tickets are £40 per day / £20 concessions, and can be bought online.

Co-produced by VIVID & Fierce, this Saturday, 5 March, will see a public intervention held by artist Eitan Buchalter, from 11.30am – 3.30pm on Heath Mill Lane.

Buchalter will be expanding on his current body of work exploring how we flow through and interact with public spaces and what happens when aspects of our environment are disrupted

Not revealing what the full nature of this ‘intervention’ will be, he’ll be targeting the pedestrian traffic en route to the local derby between Birmingham City FC and West Bromwich Albion, with vouchers for free beer at a local pub. A quick flick through of his past projects and he seems to do a lot of standing… Perhaps that’s something to look out for?

‘Veer’ will also be broadcast live online at This is Tomorrow, from 11.30am.

As an In Association With … artist at VIVID and a Fierce Festival 2011 artist, he’ll also be featuring at this years Fierce Festival, with a talk, workshop and intervention.

Dave Piper is a Birmingham based photographer, who works mainly in fashion and portraiture photography. Though they may have been given a glamorous finish, you might recognise something familiar about these two photos, they’re taken from a shoot he did at the Hare & Hounds pub in Kings Heath.

Having also recently shot his first cover for FACE ON magazine (image below), he’s now branching out into hosting nationwide photography workshops.

The Birmingham dates are set for 29 and 30 September, at the Calumet Store, so plenty of time to get a bit of practice in if you’re interested. The two day course ‘What is Digital Light?  – A Theoretical and Practical Digital editing course’, will cover the following;

This workshop will challenge and inspire. There are no rule books, there are no wrong answers – nor right ones. However, there are other theories and other ideas.

This course is not only about Photoshop, it’s about how to pull apart and re-bild your photos using a post-production style designed to really enhance your work.

For this workshop, the confident use of a DSLR and some experience of Photoshop is neccessary. The course will push and explore the ideas to enhance and finish your photography, including a study on the importance of self-critique.

Prices are TBC, and there’s also a beginners course to follow – any questions can go to Dave@davepiper.org.uk

‘Doing it the hard way: Setting up an Animation Studio Outside the Capital‘ is the follow-up to Animation Forum WM and BSeen‘s last event back in January.

The event is taking place tomorrow, 1 March, at The Studio, and is being presented bu Niel Bushnell, who runs award-winning Newcastle-based animation and VFX studio Qurios.

Niel will be sharing his experiences of establishing an animation business with practical tips on how to set up an animation studio from scratch.

There’ll be opportunity to ask questions at the end of the talk, plus the chance to chat with fellow animators in the fantastic surroundings of the The Studio’s city centre bar and restaurant.Directions to the venue can be found here.

For more information, take a look at the Facebook event page, or sign up via Eventbrite – it’s also free to attend, open to animators and designers of all levels, or anyone interested in establishing a studio-based business, and includes free drinks.

On 3 March, two films by Creative Leap artists will be screened from 5.30pm – 7pm at Ward End Library.

The Door by Benjamin Pinnock – a live action and animation drama short set in Erdington and Aston shown through the eyes of a lead character who discovers he has the ability to alter time.

Experimental Urban Morris Dance by Mark Essen explores the similarities and connections between urban street dance and British folk dance.

There will also be a Q & A session with film-makers Benjamin Pinnock and Mark Essen, along with advice from industry practitioners Katy Woods and Tas Bashir.

The event is free admission.

RoguePlay members Kim Charnock and Lorna Meehan are bringing the trials and tribulations of working as an actress to the stage, taking ‘Portrait of An Actress…‘ on tour around Birmingham.

Portrait of An Actress As… explores the relentless struggle between artistic integrity and agreeing to underpaid roles just to add to the CV through a shamelessly bitchy collection of comedy sketches.

Along with the three date schedule, they’re also hosting a comedy improvisation workshop in conjunction with the show, with a session of ‘whose line is it anyway’ type games, providing hints and tips for great comic performances.

Follow the links below to book tickets for the following dates and for more information;

• 3 March- Portrait of an Actress As… At The Station.
• 4 March – Portrait of an Actress As… At The Old Joint Stock.
• 4 March – Comedy Improvisation Workshop.
• 12 March – Portrait of an Actress As… At The Lamp Tavern.

Rhubarb Rhubarb‘s one day artist development event, The Crossing, is being brought to Birmingham, after the success of it’s London event back in October.

The Crossing: WM will be taking place in The Theatre at The Custard Factory on 26 March, and asks photographers one question – “Are you going to stay where you are, live in the past, or cross over into the new world offered to you through technology, tenacity and a mind shift around money, dependency, what is possible and how it can be achieved?”

With speakers including London based agent David Birkitt, mobile media maker Christian Payne, photographers Ed Clark and Michael Donald, and Benjamin Chesterton & David White of DuckRabbit, the event will cover sessions on ‘Cashing In…Not Selling Out’, ‘Shifting Terrain’ and ‘Photography Still Moving’.

Tickets can be booked online, and are £10 for West Midlands attendees, with transport provided if you’re traveling from Wolverhampton, Walsall, Coventry, Stoke and Hereford. For outside attendees it’s £20.

Dee Patel‘s photographic series ‘Land of Hope & Glory‘, is a non-political piece aiming to remind us that immigration is not a 21st century phenomenon, it’s been occurring for hundreds of years, bringing with it opportunity and diversity.

Behind each immigration statistic lies a story and with it, a human being. Throughout the series, Dee photographed and listened to stories from the people in Handsworth communities, where 170 of the world’s countries are represented.

I sat down with each individual asking questions to get an idea of their roots. I laughed with them and we shared coffee. This opportunity enabled me to look into their lives, into their histories, listen to their hopes and fears and to share a moment at some deeper level.

‘Land of Hope & Glory’ is currently on display at Handsworth Library until 18 March. From there it will join Anna Fields in the Creative Leap Exhibition at The Drum , opening 25 March until 14 April.

Handsworth Library is open Mon/Tues/Sat 9am – 5pm; Thursday 12 noon – 7pm.

‘The Woods’ is a performance project currently on at mac, created by Jane Packman Company and developed locally at Highbury Park and mac.

It’s been on for a few weeks already, and has attracted over 4000 visitors so far, with a free installation exhibition open throughout the day, along with a performance which tuns until 27 February.

The installation allows visitors to explore the sensory space of The Woods, influenced by woodland and the architecture of the gallery. With its provocative nature, the space offers space to invert or project your own narratives or scenarios.

Influenced by an autumn spent under the trees, nature writing and personal stories of letting go, this brave and moving performance tells a story of loss and transformation.

The Woods is intense and poetic – using narrative and gentle audience engagement to create an immersive experience which takes you deep into the richly textured world of the woods and the imagination.

Performances run daily until 27 February, tickets can be booked online via mac’s website.

Take a look at the trailer, filmed by Chris Keenen.

The Woods Trailer from Jane Packman on Vimeo.

In the last of Grand Union‘s Live Acts and Sound programme, artist duos chris+keir and Melville Mitchell will present an evening of live, alternating performance challenges on Fri 25 February.

The duos both use ‘forced performance’ as a working method, meaning their performances go off structures, tasks, systems, rules, formulas and instructions.

‘What performs? Air fresheners, roofing insulation, bicycles, carpets and rugs, powerboats, wallcoverings, drain panels, cleansing towels, car-stereo equipment, bakeware, aquarium filters, tires, fabric, window film, woodworking knives, automotive timing chains, foil containers, audio antennae, deep fat fryers, embossing tools, mop handles, music synthesizers, casement windows’

- Jon Mckenzie, Perform Or Else (2001)

Through a combination of classic performance work, formulaic jokes and wooden contraptions, chris+keir will be searching for a punchline to ‘What is the difference between Bruce Nauman’s Walking in an Exaggerated Manner Around the Perimeter of a Square and Monty Python’s The Ministry of Silly Walks?‘

Melville Mitchel on the other hand, will be utilising the paraphernalia of British drinking culture, by undertaking a series of formidable tasks which place them in both conflict and coalition, together with a set of complex rules encouraging a unified thirst toward a common goal.

Doors open at 7.30pm, performance starts at 8pm

On 5 March it’s World Book Night, and as the nation prepare to give away 1 million books, Birmingham Central Library and The Birmingham Poetry Ultras are holding a couple of celebratory events, with a line up of writers, storytellers and poets.

Birmingham Central Library

From 6.30pm – 8.45pm, at Birmingham Library Theatre, three of the city’s best-selling writers RJ Ellory, Mike Gayle and Catherine O’Flynn will be joining readers and book givers to celebrate books, libraries and reading.

Free tickets for this are available from the Box Office on (0121) 303 2323 or from Central Library reception.

Saturday Night Reader then takes outside Central Library place from 9 – 10pm, as literary fans are invited to join Birmingham Poet Laureate, Roy McFarlane, former Young Poet Laureate Matt Windle, storyteller Katrice Horsley, and local writer Paul McDonald for an hour of rambunctious storytelling, poetry, laughs and free books.

Birmingham Poetry Ultras

Hosting an evening of poetry appreciation and discussion, Birmingham Poetry Ultras will be in The Old Moseley Arms, Balsall Heath, from 8pm.

They’ll also be giving out free copies of their selected book, Seamus Heaney’s “New Selected Poems 1966-1987”, on a first come first served basis.

After settling at 183 Fazeley Street back in 2008, Ikon have confirmed that as of April 2011, Ikon Eastside will be closing up for the final time, due to public funding cuts.

The large exhibition space at the heart of Digbeth, has provided the perfect setting for large-scale work, video and events over the past few years. It’s hosted work by internationally recognised artists, including Andy Warhol, Damián Ortega, Józef Robakowski and Siobhan Davies Dance.

Rites of Spring, a three day music festival featuring Turner Prize winner Martin Creed, Modified Toy Orchestra and Epic45 will be the last event held at Ikon Eastside, from 7 – 9 April.

We are extremely saddened to be losing Ikon Eastside, but our commitment to bringing internationally recognised art to the city is unwavering. Looking to the future, our goal remains to create a permanent museum of contemporary art for Birmingham.

- Jonathan Watkins, Ikon Director

It’s not all sad news though, since Ikon are intending to keep up their involvement with the Eastside district, focusing instead on site-specific events and promoting cultural regeneration through their membership of the Eastside Contemporary Art Consortium. Their current study into the feasibility of this permanent museum, (‘Ikon Two’) also remains unaffected.

Stan’s Cafe present ‘The Cleansing of Constance Brown’, opening 1 March at their now permanent home, A E Harris.

Conceived whilst performing It’s Your Film across Europe, its themes embody power and cleansing, and is performed in a 14m long corridor, without words to an extraordinary soundtrack.

The corridor itself with its shifting configuration becomes the 73rd character, blank, often menacing and unpredictable. Scenes intercut and morph into one each other making connections across time and space.

7 PERFORMERS
68 CHARACTERS
70 MINUTES
6 WORDS
10 TONS OF KIT
A SET 2M WIDE AND 14M DEEP
45 AUDIENCE MEMBERS…
…WILL YOU BE ONE OF THEM?

You can catch the performance from 1 – 19 March (except Sunday / Monday), booking is via mac Box Office.

Ikon are currently preparing for their latest round exhibitions, which open with a preview evening on 22 February, and will be on display until 25 April.

Marjolijn Dijkman
Theatrum Orbis Terrarum (Theatre of the World)
The first UK solo exhibition of work by Dutch artist Marjolijn Dijkman, featuring archival works, video, animation, sculpture and an installation inspired by the dining table of Soho House, Birmingham, the 18th century meeting place of the Lunar Society.

Robert Orchardson
Endless façade
The first European museum exhibition of works by Robert Orchardson (born Glasgow 1976, based in London), an artist who makes sculptures inspired by science fiction and futuristic design.

Rabbya Nasser and Hurmat Ul Ain
White as Snow
Pakistani artists Rabbya Naseer and Hurmat Ul Ain present White as Snow (2008), a video short that challenges assumptions about women in the Islamic world.

Since we first introduced Project Pigeon, they’ve been busy working on their community pigeon loft, which looks to have had some interesting design suggestions. Tomorrow marks the first of their workshops providing a step by step guide to keeping pigeons.

The workshops will take place from 2-4pm on the dates below, at Project Pigeon’s Loft, Milk Street, Digbeth, Birmingham (in Boxxed’s backyard opposite Birmingham Backpackers under a viaduct). It’s free to go along, but places should be booked in advance via email at: projectpigeondigbeth@gmail.com

Here’s what they’ve got lined up through until April;

Saturday 19th February:  Introduction to pigeon fancying

Find out about the history of pigeon fancying, meet some pigeon fanciers and find out about why they keep pigeons, meet Project Pigeon’s birds and watch some pigeons fly.

Friday 25th February:  A pigeon’s home and life

This workshop will be focused on the different seasons in a pigeons life, from racing season to breeding season.  We will also look at the different kinds of pigeon lofts there are.

Saturday 26th February:  Day to day pigeon loft management

How to keep your pigeons clean and happy – from cleaning the loft to giving the pigeons a bath.

Friday 4th March:  Making nest boxes and perches

A woodwork session where we will design and make essential items for the inside of pigeon lofts and make any loft repairs

Saturday 5th March:  Racing pigeons, Birmingham rollers and tipplers

There are many kinds of pigeons, racing pigeons are used in racing, Birmingham rollers in sequence flying and tipplers in endurance flying.

Friday 11th March:  A pigeon’s diet

Like any athlete a pigeons diet is very important.  In this session you will find out about all the vital vitamins, minerals and foods needed to keep pigeons on top form.

Saturday 12th March:  Veterinary skills

Vets in the UK know little about racing pigeons, and if you took your pigeon to the vet every time there was something wrong it would cost a lot and wouldn’t be practical.  Learn about what kinds of injuries pigeon get and how you can help your pigeon.

Friday 18th March:  Breeding

Come and see and learn about squeekers (baby pigeons)!

Saturday 19th March:  Training and racing

How do pigeons find their way home?  How do you train a racing pigeon?  How do you win a race?!

Saturday 2nd April:  Making a magazine about pigeons

Help Project Pigeon design a magazine based on what we have learnt during the workshops.

Saturday 16th April:  Come and watch a live pigeon race!

You might have been to the horses or to the dogs but have you ever seen a pigeon race?  Now is your chance!  Please email if you intend to come to this because the time of the race will only be known on Saturday morning – the morning of the race.