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"No Disney princesses wear glasses and that made me feel like I wasn't beautiful enough." - Lowri Moore and Our Head Designer, Natalie Owen on Their New Children's Book

“If you don’t like something, change it.” That’s what poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou wrote and preached throughout her life. And, it’s exactly what Lowri Moore has done – fuelled by the lack of representation for glasses-wearing characters in Disney films, the eleven-year-old has collaborated with our very own designer, Natalie Owen on their new children’s book, Princess Rose and the Golden Glasses… 

Splendour at Home: Dig Deep in Aid of Framework

This Saturday, when we should have all been moseying down to Wollaton Park for a day of dancing and drinking, the tireless team behind Splendour will be hosting a one-off digital festival, aiming to bring the essence of the festival directly to our homes, while asking us to dig deep for local charity Framework….

The Art of Beer's Seth Smith Has Drawn 41 of Our City's Best Boozers

Meet Seth Smith, aka the Art of Beer. He’s spent the last half-decade creating illustrations inspired by the nation’s favourite alcoholic beverage. This year he’s drawn 41 of the city's best boozers in conjunction with Nottingham Craft Beer Week and soon they’ll be available as free postcards at a pub near you…

Art Works: Kai-Yan Lai

After bagging success at the Young Creative Awards, Kai-Yan Lai has earned himself a successful career behind the camera... 

Honey Williams on her July 2020 Cover, Representation and Her Career

Our cover artist, Honey Williams, talks to our Art co-Editor, LJ Vaughan, about making art, her role as a choir director, and what it’s like to be a big black woman living in Nottingham...

Death in Exile: Why the WWII Polish Prime Minister in Exile Was Laid to Rest in Newark on Trent

77 years ago this month, at the height of World War Two, Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrived in Nottingham to deliver a eulogy at the funeral of Władysław Sikorski who was being laid to rest in Newark-on-Trent. The Polish Prime Minister in exile had died in mysterious circumstances twelve days previously, with his airplane crashing just sixteen seconds after take off in Gibraltar, killing all on board but the pilot. But what were the circumstances that led up to one of the key figures in WWII being buried in Nottingham? We look at the events and conspiracies that continue to surround the death of Władysław Sikorski…

Stop Wars to Stop Racism: The History Behind Belward Street's Iconic Street Art

For years, Richie 'Pops' Baker's 'Stop Wars' design stood as one of Nottingham's most recognisable and iconic street art pieces. Having recently been reimagined as the new 'Stop Racism' piece, the artist, who now calls New Zealand home, explains the history behind his design...

Nusic New Music Podcast #229 with Holly Fallon, Unknown Era, Tiggs, The Amber Herd and More

Flying Home During COVID: Your Stories of Getting Back to Notts During Coronavirus

Those who had holidays booked as the COVID crisis began to escalate were faced with a difficult decision: to go ahead with their plans and risk getting sick or stranded, or give up their hard-earned holidays and take the financial hit. But for some, the situation was out of their control, as they were already abroad by the time the health crisis had become a serious issue. With panic starting, misinformation spreading and lockdown looming, they faced a ticking clock to get back to the UK before it was too late…

Writer Josh Helmer on His New Self-Published Dystopian Novel, Dark Wonders

With life currently feeling like it’s been torn from the pages of a dystopian novel, now seems like the perfect time to release a novel exploring themes like technology, society and the future. Luckily for us, that’s just what Joshua Helmer has done with Dark Wonders. We caught up with the Nottingham writer to discuss his self-published debut novel...

Isolation Art Mail Allows You to Work Creatively with Others Through the Post

In a bid to inspire creative communication through traditional, tangible methods, Tracey Meek is combating loneliness and isolation the old-fashioned way. We caught up with the artist to discuss Isolation Art Mail, her community art intervention project that encourages people to share a collaborative chain letter of unfinished artwork...

5 Nottinghamshire Artists You Can Support from Home

Back in mid-March, before our lives took an unexpected turn, Nottingham Contemporary hosted a fair celebrating all things print. It was my last cultural day out, and with a variety of workshops and some thirty stalls to browse, it did not disappoint. The fair introduced me to many talented makers based here in Nottingham, and now, without galleries to visit, it’s a great time to bring art into the home, while supporting Nottingham’s creative community.

Here are a few of the featured artists, whose works are available for purchase…

A Guide to an Epic Games Night

A few months ago, the thought of joining all your friends on conference call software to partake in a quiz probably would have baffled you, but for most of us it’s now the norm. If the thought of yet ANOTHER Zoom quiz fills you with dread, fear not – as we’ve got the best ideas for hosting a games night during lockdown, without a pub quiz in sight...

Nusic New Music Podcast #228 with Daisy Godfrey, Unknown Era, Jack Wolff, Lvndlxrd and More...

Letters of Constraint: How the National Justice Museum are Documenting Life in the Coronavirus Era

With the aim of encouraging people to reflect on their lockdown experiences to create a written legacy of the COVID crisis, the National Justice Museum’s new Letters of Constraint virtual exhibition is looking for your participation. We talked to Dr Martin Glynn, the museum’s writer in residence, about how you can put pen to paper and be part of Nottingham’s lockdown story... 

“All my life I’ve been taught that the police won’t help me” – Artist and activist Kay on George Floyd, police brutality and the ongoing protests in Britain…

For many, the death of George Floyd was quickly contextualised as an American problem. Stories of racial profiling and police brutality have grown to become expected from a country that seems more divided than it has been in a generation, leaving many in Britain feeling disgusted at how things are done on that side of the Atlantic. But, as the events of the last week have shown, the illusion that issues raised from Floyd’s killing are consigned to the US has been roundly smashed, with thousands taking to the streets in eighteen countries around the world (as well as all fifty US States) to support the Black Lives Matter campaign, which is now considered the largest Civil Rights campaign in history. Growing up in the projects of Alameda, California to Eritrea-born parents, artist and activist Kay – who works under the name The Rainbow Prince – has seen the way police brutality and racism takes form on both sides of the pond, having moved to Nottingham six months ago. And as Notts gets ready to play its part in the movement with a protest on Sunday 6 June, we talk to Kay about why activism is important in the UK…

Under Cover Artist: Andreas Schlechtriemen

Sieburg-based artist and regular Notts visitor Andreas Schlechtriemen fills us in on what inspired his robin-themed cover artwork…

No. Twelve's Caramel Artichoke and Truffle Risotto Recipe

To help you beat the isolation boredom, No. Twelves' Ritchie Stainsby shares his caramel artichoke and truffle risotto recipe...

Nusic New Music Podcast #227 with George Gretton, Wolf Club, Mollie Ralph, Do Nothing and More...

Interview: Corrina Rothwell on Life as an Artist and the End of Blather

After almost two years of unleashing the manic brilliance of writer Adrian Reynolds in an illustrative fashion, our regular feature, Blather, sadly came to an end last month. Instead of getting all melancholy about things, we chose to celebrate its time between the pages by catching up (over email, of course) with the local lady behind the brushes: Corrina Rothwell. Under the spotlight we get chatting about Blather’s beginnings, the pleasures and perils of being an artist and the inspirations behind her brand of explosive abstract workings.

Fleur East talks living in lockdown, reality TV and her new album, Fearless

After two stints on The X Factor, including finishing runner-up in 2014 where she became the first contestant in the show’s history to reach Number One on the iTunes chart during the competition, singer, songwriter and radio presenter Fleur East has walked an interesting path through the music industry. With her new album Fearless released last month, we caught up with her to talk about reality television, the unexpected truths of the music industry and how she’s handling lockdown...

Nusic New Music Podcast #226 with Bru-C, Eliza Rae, Sian Clarke, JJ Lovegrove and More

Notts Street Art: A Checklist for Your Daily Walk

Hands up if you're missing the whole heap of real-world culture that Notts has to offer? I think it's safe to say we all are. But while we stay safe and stay home, there is one artistic offering still available from this city. So the next time you’re on your daily walk, run or cycle, take a minute to look around at the art pieces that aren’t in galleries or on our screens, but sit on Nottingham’s walls, buildings and side streets...

Introducing Our New Art Editors...

One of the last things we did before the world went all Walking Dead was to appoint two brand-new Art Editors. But sadly for us, them and the entire artistic community in Nottingham, all of the galleries in the city closed their doors soon after. So by means of an introduction, we thought it might be nice for Laura-Jade Vaughan and Rachel Willcocks to write about an exhibition that made a big impression on them...

Under Cover Artist: Beane

We talk to competition winner Beane about the inspiration behind his beauteous cover...