Live Arts Blog

By Mohsen Keiany

ArtsFest, regarded as the UK’s biggest free arts festival, which normally takes place in different parts of the Great Britain and in year form 10-12th September 2010 in Birmingham City Centre. The normal feature of the Town was changed as territory Queen Elizabeth was decorated with white tents and the fluctuated crowds moving from one tent to other like clear water filling up various crystal containers.

Undoubtedly every single participant, visitor, artist and arts facilitator had its own agenda for taking part in this massive art event, but everyone shared a common goal of loving art of any form. Therefore the ArtsFest can be regarded as   the festival for the arts lover. 

Birmingham ArtsFest as its fundamental concept was featuring installations, performances, and art exhibitions and also providing arts workshops, talks and screenings across the performing, visual and digital arts genres. It also attempted to create markets for both arts producer (artist) and visitors.  ArtsFest was also a showcase or in fact a  showing off for Hundreds of small and big art centres and organisations as well as individuals which are appearing at least once a year, but yet it does worth seeing  and feeling the delicious taste of togetherness.

Birmingham City Council as the core of the event not only had a strong hand in organising the event, but also invited its Artists in Residence for documenting the event from their own artistic intelligence and vision.   As they have been involved involving different communities around Birmingham for more than a year,   they gained some valuable experience of recording some of the community’s favourite arts, music sounds, animations and also native Brumy fruits and vegetations. 

I've seen quite a bit - have been playing at the Yardbird. Seen some nice bits of dance, some great. I have to say, seeing so many people and lots of things in one place - it's a genuine market place where you hear about things. It gets lots of things together. A more simplified programme — easier to see what's on would have helped. Keep doing it!

James B

It’s not everyday that you get to sit in a comfortable chair in the centre of Birmingham and watch a real life flamenco guitarist up close. The City Café is intimate, and it suits Sonanta Flamenca’s delicate and captivating brand of flamenco down to the ground. David Shepherd is a remarkably accomplished guitarist, and with the help of his percussion section, he takes us on a half hour journey through the occasions, emotions and moods of Southern Spain. He also, rather kindly, introduces each different style that he plays with a short history of how that particular style came to be. Not content to merely entertain, it seems that David intends to educate his audience as well, and we lap it up. The set flows expertly between light and dark, from mournful laments to joyful revelry, plus a sprinkling of pure showmanship thrown in for good measure. All too predictably, it’s raining outside, but my head is so full of thoughts of blistering sunshine, bullfights and gypsy weddings that, when I get back to my car, I don’t even notice I’m soaked.

Andy Wright

I liked the capoeira and salsa and half marathon — all the stuff i like to do. I've enjoyed meeting friendly and helpful people — this is my first time at ArtsFest. Next year I'd like to see more salsa and dance — not just music. I got my bike nicked recently, but would have liked to have done the traffic free bike ride!.

We  took pictures of some of the people wandering round with white masks on. They sat next to us and we got scared! We'd like to see more weird people in masks next year!

We also want more activities for teenagers to do (a lot of what we've seen is for younger children) — we want to draw and make things that are a bit more grown up.

By Katie and Sukdeep