Birmingham is a cosmopolitan city in the West Midlands, England, it is a really popular destination for weekend city breaks. The city has a huge variety of first class tourist attractions including many churches which have Grade I status and historic houses as well as many museums and galleries, including Birmingham’s Ikon Gallery.
The Ikon Gallery in Birmingham is an art gallery specialising in contemporary art which is situated in the former Oozells Street Board School, Brindleyplace, however it was not always housed so suitably.
The Ikon was founded in the year nineteen sixty four by Angus Skene and four students of art. The four artists were; Jesse Bruton, Robert Groves, Sylvani Merilion and David Prentice. Angus Skene had bought a piece of art by David Prentice and the two of them talked about the endless problems suffered by local artists, which included the lack of venues and support. The conversation led to the creation of Ikon which was to be a “gallery without walls”.
Skene initially financed the project, which consisted of mobile exhibitions in such unusual venues as cinemas and post offices in a motorcycle sidecar, the idea was to increase the accessibility of art to the public. To reduce expenses staffing was by the founding artists, family and friends who did not charge for their time. Later the Ikon Gallery established itself in a glass walled stall in the infamous Bull Ring shopping centre.
During the next two decades the Ikon Gallery moved from place to place until 1997 when it purchased, with help from the National Lottery Fund, its present premises, the former Oozells Street Board School. In the last few years the Ikon Gallery has held a selection of exhibitions and its continuous ability to produce the superb has caused it to become surprisingly popular, to such an extent that it opened another gallery in 2006, the Ikon Eastside in Digbeth.
If you are thinking about a short break in Birmingham please think about a visit to the Ikon Gallery. Also it is important to know that although there are many Birmingham hotels finding Birmingham bed and breakfast can sometimes be very difficult. It is therefore vitally important to book your accommodation at the earliest opportunity. You will need to know that Birmingham Airport is approximately 8 miles distance from the the city center (just off the A45 and near the M42, Junction 6. You will discover that there is a number of hotels nearby the airport.