Join artist Mel Berman for a mosaic workshop repurposing old CDs.
Mel Berman is a metal and mixed media artist who runs Metallix Studio. She creates artworks using embossed pewter and copper sheet and combines them with free machine embroidery and different coloured waxes and inks. They are used to embellish everything from notebooks, mirror frames, boxes and canvasses to create unique one-off artworks.
Join artist Sofia Niazi from Print and Matter for a two hour workshop to learn how to make a 2-colour risograph print using drawing or collage. This workshop includes the production of five prints and all equipment and materials is provided.
The workshop is suitable for ages 7+ and costs £10 per person (subsidised thanks to support from Arts Council England). Book here.
Sofia Niazi is a Studio Partner at The Old Print Works.
In this beginner’s bookbinding workshop, you will learn a saddle stitch binding method and create a one of a kind pocket journal to take home.
All tools are provided, along with a wide selection of papers, card stock, magazines, old books, maps and more. You will get to pick the pages for your notebook, learn how to bind them together and then decorate the cover in your own style. Feel free to bring with you: old envelopes, pages from unused notebooks or sketchbooks, sheet music, maps, posters, old books, cards, paper bags, wrapping paper. Anything goes!
Suitable for older children accompanied by an adult (we will be using sharp tools – an awl, needle, scissors and craft knife)
Our repairers were invited to join MAC as part of their activities to mark World Recycling Day. We and are happy to support them and to share Balsall Heath Repair Cafe with MAC visitors.
If you join the Repair Cafe regularly please do come and see us at the MAC on Saturday 14 March. Located in Cannon Hill Park its a short distance from The Old Print Works and accessible via public transport.
Balsall Heath Repair Cafe returns to The Old Print Works on Saturday 10 May.
The CDT room has a range of tools for turning, milling, precision cutting, drilling, engraving and pyrography. Projects are designed and led by children, who make musical instruments, vehicles, furniture or whatever they can imagine out of wood, plastic and metal. Children are also encouraged to adapt and repair their tools.
These sessions are run by Richard Newton who has 30 years of experience teaching craft, design & technology to children.
The Original Art Club is a safe creative space for children to explore, create and develop their artistic skills. This is project-based learning tailored to each individual and their ability. The idea is progress not perfection and with an ‘I can do’ attitude here at the club we want all our budding artists to feel confident and encouraged in their creative journey.
We teach several 2D and 3D techniques within our projects using a wide range of materials from pencil, acrylic paint and watercolours, to clay and paper mache. Our mixed age and mixed ability classes is a unique way in building self-confidence, independence and social bonding. Those children who have been with us longer will have gained more flexibility in steering their own projects and outcomes. We use mediums such as acrylics, watercolours, oil/soft pastels, inks, fine liners and 3D work with papier mache, clay and paper sculpture. At the club we value art and believe it is a significant component for the holistic education of children.
Join textile artist Jane Thakoordin as we celebrate the month of International Women’s Day by honouring, celebrating memorialising the women who have impacted our lives.
Using a mini thermal printer, you can create a 2 or 3d collage. All materials provided – just bring a photo of your chosen person on your phone.
Sam’s Vegan Delights is a family based Caribbean vegan food business based in Birmingham.
Sam became vegan as a child and raised both of her children as vegan too (which they continued with their children). Fast forward a generation there have been over 3 generations of vegan in Sam’s immediate family. Sam and her children make up the quirky Sams Vegan Delights team. Being of Jamaican and mixed heritage decent, they offer home cooked naughty Jamaican & Asian infused vegan food every Friday and Saturday at The Mix Community Cafe (ran by The Gap Arts Project) 12-8pm. Sam’s flavours were inspired by her father’s dishes growing up as a child and was later inspired by the spices of the Asian diaspora due to them having so many vegetarian dishes, this experience inspired Sam to infuse both flavours together to create something delicious and unique.
Sam’s Vegan Delights aims to offer mouth watering delicious food, that is both full of flavour and packed with nutrition. Sam offers traditional Jamaican meat curry flavours using soy-based substitutes. Sam also specialises in non-soy-based dishes such as her famous Original Dumpling Patties, Original Ras Request & Original dinner dumplings. From her vegan sexy juice to curries, dall & vegan hot dogs, there is something for the whole family to enjoy.
Join us on Saturday 14th March, 12.30–2pm. In this session with MAKE & TADA!, participants can make a hand-painted wooden flower.
This is a relaxed, welcoming free community workshop, suitable for all abilities. All materials are provided, along with guidance throughout. *Children under the age of 8 must be supervised by an accompanying adult*
MAKE & TADA! is a Studio Partner at The Old Print Works.
Join The GAP in the MIX Cafe to make your own piece of bunting inspired by Balsall Heath using paint, fabric, vinyl and more.
Your artwork will be added to a metres-long bunting piece created collectively over the next several months as part of the Believe in Balsall Heath project. Once finished, it will be displayed on the streets nearby to celebrate and decorate our beloved neighbourhood.
Feeling the draughts in this freeeeezing weather? Improve the cosiness of your home by making a draught excluder to go by the door. You choose the fabrics you want, Kirsty will help by sewing it for you, and you can stuff it! 11am-1pm. All welcome. Free – donations welcome.
The MIAH Foundation is excited to present a new exhibition, Devotional Art, featuring artworks by talented UK-based artists. The exhibition is the result of a recent open call that invited UK-based artists to submit artworks exploring the theme of devotion.
The selected artworks in the exhibition show the remarkable creativity and skill of local artists in interpreting devotion. Visitors will encounter intricate miniature paintings with delicate brushwork, vibrant textiles that merge pattern and symbolism, and contemporary pieces that explore spirituality through innovative forms and materials. Each artwork invites close observation, offering layers of meaning through color, texture, and composition, while reflecting the artist’s personal engagement with faith and devotion. The collection as a whole celebrates both the richness of traditional practices and the fresh perspectives of contemporary interpretations.
Art enthusiasts, collectors, and anyone interested in the intersection of faith and creativity are welcome to explore the exhibition, with select original artworks and prints available for purchase.
Exhibition Period: 27 November – 13 December 2025 Open Thursdays to Saturdays 12:30 – 5:30 PM
Art Sale: Saturday 6 and 13 December 2025, 12:30 pm – 5:30 pm
Exhibition entry is FREE; we appreciate donations that go towards our operating costs. Booking is encouraged; however, walk-ins are also welcome.
Join us to explore Timurid architecture and create your own ceramic coaster to take home. This workshop is being delivered as supportive programming for the Architecture Course.
The Timurid empire (1370-1507) was founded by Timur, a descendant of Genghis Khan. He made Samarkand (modern-day Uzbekistan) his capital, patroning grand buildings there and making it the crown jewel of his vast empire. Some of the most impressive Timurid constructions in Samarkand include the Registan square, the Shah-i Zinda necropolis, and the Bibi Khanum mosque, named after Timur’s wife.
The Bibi Khanum Mosque is one of Samarkand’s most impressive monuments, and was one the largest and most magnificent mosques of the Islamic world in its time. In typical Timurid fashion, it is adorned with radiant tiles displaying geometric designs, vegetal motifs, and calligraphic compositions, in the classic Timurid colour palette of dark blue, turquoise, and white. By the mid-1900s, its sheer monumentality and frequent earthquakes had led to its structural collapse, but it was restored by the Soviets.
During this workshop, you will study the tile patterns around the Bibi Khanum Mosque in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. You will recreate the central floral composition of the tile design on a ceramic tile that can be taken home to be displayed or used as a coaster. Please note: this workshop focuses on the design of the tile. Due to the length of the workshop, the design will be painted using acrylic paints and not the underglaze.
Concessionary Ticket (for students, over 65s and low-income households): £10.00 (+ticket fees)
Who is this course for? All levels of ability are welcome. Suitable for ages 9+. All materials are provided.
REFUND POLICY: Please note that tickets are only refunded (minus the Eventbrite admin fee) if requested more than 7 days before the event.
This workshop is being delivered as part of the ‘Balsall Heath Second Saturdays’ programme – a monthly mini-festival celebrating creativity, community, local culture and the arts, held on the second Saturday of every month.
Join Darkroom Birmingham for an open evening featuring a relaxed introduction to analogue photography and a hands-on print demonstration. Meet the photographers behind the space, discover upcoming workshops, and enjoy a friendly, welcoming environment for anyone curious about analogue photography processes.
Join us for a drop in workshop to make fun and colourful paper beads. This workshop is organised by members of Daily Thread, the community textiles sessions which run every week at The Old Print Works.
An interactive discussion exploring racial injustice, the British legal system and local history through the real-life story of Oswald Grey
Join us at The GAP for an interactive Community Conversation with writer Jon Berry exploring forgotten local history, capital punishment and racial injustices within the British legal system through the real-life story of Oswald Augustus Grey.
Oswald came to England from Jamaica aged 18 in 1960, and lived on Cannon Hill Road in Balsall Heath. Two years later he became the last man to be hanged in Birmingham and the last Black man to be executed in Britain. This is a tale of hasty injustice and deep-seated prejudice that is as relevant today as it was 60 years ago.
Interactive elements will include reviewing evidence sheets to make your case, reading excerpts from a theatre script that dramatises Oswald’s trial, and community conversations around the importance of this story today
These presentations, discussions and activities will take place between 4 – 6pm, with open unstructured space to chat and connect between 6 – 7pm.
All welcome. Whilst this is a heavy topic, we intend to create this event as a warm and gentle space for reflection that centres on building connections, solidarity and knowledge within the community
Light refreshments will be provided by Sam’s Vegan Delights
Join Wonderfish Art Studio at Balsall Heath Second Saturday for a hands-on creative collage workshop! Perfect for ages 4–10 and their grown-ups.
In a safe creative space, we’ll be exploring what we feel about Birmingham and Balsall Heath with the art of collage, using different materials. Together, we are making collaborative artworks that celebrate our beautiful city and connect community and culture.
Discover the power of self-expression at our unique Self-Portrait Studio Event at The Old Print works, in the heart of Balsall Heath. This one-of-a-kind experience invites you to step into a professional studio space where you become the photographer and the subject. Capture your own portrait in a safe, creative environment using professional lighting and backdrops, guided by friendly experts who will help you feel confident and inspired. Whether you’re a seasoned photographer or a first-timer, this is your chance to create striking images that reveal your personality and story.
Alongside taking your portrait, you’ll have the exciting opportunity to share your wildest thoughts and feelings on a communal mood board. This collaborative space encourages honesty, imagination, and connection—express your dreams, challenges, or inspirations through words, drawings, or images. Your contributions will help capture the vibrant spirit and diversity of Balsall Heath, giving voice to stories often unheard.
By participating, you will also play a vital role in an ongoing documentary project dedicated to exploring life in Balsall Heath. Your portrait and shared insights could be featured in exhibitions, publications, or digital media, helping to construct a rich tapestry of this community’s identity. Join us for a day of creativity, reflection, and community building—where your story matters and your image can inspire change.
The experience is offered by the PRISM Photography Network and it Is part of the Balsall Heath Observation project.
