The Rushall and Tame Valley Canals just got greener and greener and more and more beautiful as we made our way from Ocker Hill to Brown Hills.

Earlier this week Giulia and I were working with the Year One children and staff from Birches Green Primary School. As part of a project about Birmingham the children have been learning about canals. Mrs Wildman invited us in to school to lead a special creative session and to talk more about our experiences of working on our boat. The children worked to produce a series of brightly-coloured designs in paper and in fabric.

As part of Ikon’s 50th year we present a series of events focusing on the five decades of Ikon’s history and the social, political and cultural context.

David Prentice was a founder of Ikon, one of a few that had the vision to encourage artistic adventure in Birmingham. Energetic, very gifted and intelligent, he made an enormous contribution to our recent art history. David was painting right up until his last days – interestingly referring back in style to his seminal work from the early 60s – as keen and as generous as ever in his conversation.

Are you aged 15–19?Enthusiastic about visual arts?Interested in working with artists?Want to find out more about Ikon?

Ikon recently had the pleasure of welcoming our patrons into the galleries for an exclusive curator-led tour of current exhibitions; Jamal Penjweny, Saddam is Here, David Tremlett, 3 Drawing Rooms and a selection of early work by John Salt.

Are there any budding photographers out there? Brindleyplace has launched a special photography competition in partnership with Ikon and Café Opus at Ikon that aims to celebrate the traditional Japanese festival of Hanami. An annual event, Hanami is the Japanese tradition of ‘enjoying the transient beauty of flowers’ and is celebrated to coincide with the flowering of cherry blossom across the country.

As part of Ikon’s 50th year we present a series of events focusing on the five decades of Ikon’s history and the social, political and cultural context.

Ikon has been awarded £210,000 by Arts Council England to bring art to the Black Country.

Aged 18-25, unemployed and want to get into creative employment? Come and find out more at the Get into Creative Employment Fair 2014, 10am-1pm on Saturday 25 January at The Birmingham Rep Theatre, Centenary Square, Broad Street, Birmingham, B1 3AH.

With Christmas now just weeks away, Ikon has a host of events planned to make finding that special gift even easier.

Ikon celebrates its 50th anniversary during 2014–2015. A series of special exhibitions and events, collectively known as Ikon 50, is planned to mark the milestone year.

Have you left it last minute for your office Christmas party?

Ikon hosts a number of events at this years Birmingham Literature Festival which runs from 3-12 October.

Since 2009 Ikon has been actively promoting the idea of a new museum of contemporary art in Birmingham, believing that this city – the largest city in the UK besides London – should offer much more in terms of visual arts provision. The first part of a feasibility study was undertaken and a central location identified, through the support of Birmingham City Council,  whilst overwhelming enthusiasm for the project was expressed by local residents.