100 Days of Creativity, an extensive programme of artistic events and activities,is being staged in Birmingham this summer, taking place across the city from Sunday 19 May to Monday 26 August.
The programme of events announced today includes music, dance, theatre, and film, and will take place in the 100 days starting from the final day of Flatpack Film Festival on Sunday 19 May to the final day of Birmingham Weekender on Monday 26 August.
With the help of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, City Curator Alex Nicholson-Evans has joined forces with West Midlands Growth Company, Colmore BID, Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, Culture Central, Birmingham City Council, Central BID, Jewellery Quarter BID and Southside District BID to bring this festival to Birmingham.
Alex said: “Together with our partners, we’ve created a programme which showcases the incredible range of creative activities that you can engage with in Birmingham. 100 Days of Creativity will be a celebration of the breadth of ways you can express and experience creativity in the city this summer.
Throughout the 100 days, we’ll be marking important cultural milestones in Birmingham, such as the return of Birmingham Weekender, 60 years of Ikon, and 40 years of Birmingham Jazz Festival. And there is so much more, from creative workshops and major concerts to theatre productions and the return of many well-loved festivals.
We’re very lucky to have so many fantastic creative events taking place in the city this summer; some that people will already have heard of, but my hope is that this initiative will introduce the residents of Birmingham and visitors to the city to events and activities that might not have been on their radars yet, too.”
Highlights include Birmingham Design Festival (6 to 8 June), the biennial celebration of design held across Birmingham city centre, and the multi award-winning cultural phenomenon Hamilton (25 June – 31 August), coming to Birmingham Hippodrome for a ten-week season. Birmingham Hippodrome’s popular free B-SIDE Hip-Hop Festival (6 – 9 June) is also included in the programme, which brings together extraordinary Hip-Hop artists and breathtaking acts from breakin’, graffiti, DJ’ing and MC’ing.
Elsewhere, Ikon presents the first major solo exhibition by British artist Dion Kitson, Rue Britannia (10 May to 8 September), and an ambitious off-site commission in partnership with English Heritage. Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery’s Victorian Radicals exhibition (until 31 October) presents vibrant paintings and exquisite drawings alongside jewellery, glass, textiles, and metalwork which explore the Pre-Raphaelites radical vision for art and society.
Birmingham-born and raised Apache Indian will perform a very special show at Midlands Arts Centre (3 August) to celebrate his 30-year career, bringing his unique fusion of urban Asian and reggae to his hometown audience, and Cathedral Square hosts In:Site by Craftspace (21 to 24 May), showcasing the work of art, craft and design graduates from across the UK and bringing the work of emerging artists to new audiences.
Alongside the major events happening at some of Birmingham’s biggest venues, there is also a host of smaller activities and experiences taking place throughout the city. Activities and workshops where people can get involved and learn new skills include pottery making, creative writing, photography, and pasta making.
Neil Rami, Chief Executive of the West Midlands Growth Company, which operates the region’s tourism programme Visit Birmingham, said: “Throughout the spring and summer, 100 Days of Creativity will illustrate to our many visitors that Birmingham is a fantastic destination to enjoy world-class activities, events, and experiences.
The region’s cultural offer continues to be one of our great success stories. We encourage residents and visitors to log onto our Visit Birmingham website to explore the many fantastic events taking place from 19 May as we celebrate the breadth of talent and creativity of the people who live and work here.”
City Curator, Alex Nicholson-Evans added, “100 Days of Creativity will put a spotlight on Birmingham and its resilient and innovative artistic scene. It’s an opportunity to showcase the creative work that takes place in Birmingham to a national and international audience. We already have multiple activities and events taking place every single day of the 100 days, but this is just the beginning, and we’ll be adding even more exciting events to the programme in the coming months.”
The 100 Days of Creativity project has received funding from the UK government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
100 Days of Creativity will run from Sunday 19 May to Monday 26 August at various venues and locations across Birmingham.
For more information about 100 Days of Creativity and to view the programme, visit https://visitbirmingham.com/100daysofcreativity
Follow Visit Birmingham on Instagram for daily updates during the 100 days: visit_birmingham.
Main picture: Victorian Radicals – a visitor viewing Medea by Frederick Sandys. Photographer: Irina Mackie