Festival season is upon us so expect Birmingham to be packed full of cultural tourists vying to get a share of our city. Everything kicks off this week with Birmingham Arts and Science festival, created by the University of Birmingham. It’s an event that promises to show you the theory and practice behind visual art and will have you knee-deep in wonder throughout. We give you our Top 6.

1. Fairytales and Fables  at Winterbourne House and Garden
A wonderland rooted right at the heart of everyone’s childhood, Fairytales and Fables is the perfect place to take the kids or just your inner-child to (re)introduce the world of art through its more fantastical side. The tour/exhibition explores the magic of the elements in Victorian and Edwardian painting including pieces from Arthur Rackham and Kate Greenway. Magical stuff.
Mon 13 Mar to Sun 19 Mar daily from 10.30am – 4.30pm. £7 www.winterbourne.org.uk

2. Clepsydra at Old Joe Clock Tower at Chancellors Court, Birmingham University
A free, immersive film installation that contrasts the historical charm of the venue with a renewed perspective using film and collage to highlight the enormity of nature, challenging its audience to consider the repercussions of global warming.
Tue 14 Mar, 7.30pm – 9pm. Free www.artsandsciencefestival.co.uk

3. In Search of Water experiential journey at Birmingham University
Don your ‘pointy’ thinking cap and get stuck into this bizarre experiential journey/thought piece. A participatory and interactive walk that invites its participants to wear special costumes (said pointy hat) and set off on a journey to find water. The comic costumes apparently act as portals of perception to bring an awareness to how we perceive ourselves and our surroundings. Surreal stuff.
Tue 14 Mar, meet on University campus. 12pm – 1pm. Free, but booking is essential. www.artsandsciencefestival.co.uk

4. A Midlands Odyssey Writing Workshop at mac, Birmingham
A Midlands Odyssey features a series of stories that transplant the Homeric epic to the contemporary English Midlands with a range of settings from smart canal-side apartments to late-night launderettes. The storytellers behind this book host this writing workshop to mark the re-launch of their poignant and perfectly British collection of short stories. Be challenged into created a wonderful piece of creative writing and encouraged to discuss this work with others.
Wed 15 Mar, 10.30am – 12.30pm, tickets £10 which includes a copy of The Midlands Odyssey and materials. www.eventbrite.co.uk

5. Bodies Saying Words Performance at Grand Union
It’s no secret that the shining jewel that is Grand Union art space has rapidly staked its claim to the crown of Birmingham’s underground art scene over the last couple of years. This current exhibition explores the relationship between language and movement through poetry, performance and the live work of two artists. Avoiding The Genius by Jesper List Thomsen is a new piece of writing that uses language to highlight this relationship, whilst Hanne Lippard has created new art from existing bodies of writing using rhythm, sound and visual forms of spoken word. Just what we’d expect from Birmingham’s edgiest art space.
Thu 16 Mar, 6.30pm – 7.30pm at Grand Union in Minerva works. Free www.eventbrite.co.uk

6. University Chorus and Symphony Orchestra at the Town Hall
The Symphony Orchestra’s collaboration with the 200 person strong University Chorus in a evening of emotive performance using extracts from Haydn’s masterpiece The Creation. Fall in love with live music in the most classical of ways, the perfect way to wrap up Birmingham Arts and Science Festival with a ceremonial and evocative bang.
Sat 18 Mar, 7.30pm – 9.30pm, £5 to £15. www.artsandsciencefestival.co.uk

*Sold Out* Also see our previous post on the culinary cocktail science experiment with Kaye Winwood, Nuala Clooney and Robert Wood (of Wilderness) here.

To see our pick of the films screening at this years festival go here