Coimbra Biennial: contemporary art across Portugal’s historic capital
Using art as a unique way to explore the UNESCO heritage of Portugal’s historic capital city

Coimbra, the historic capital of Portugal, equidistant between Lisbon & Porto, is UNESCO recognised for its exquisite Romanesque & Baroque architecture. It is also home to the ANOZERO biennial of contemporary art, with 2024’s edition recently opening. The biennial is centred in the enormous 17th century Monastery of Santa Clara-a-Nova, with installations and exhibitions across the Romanesque & Renaissance architecture of the city. 

L’AQUILA: REBUILDING A CITY WITH CULTURE & GASTRONOMY
Just a short drive from Rome is this Umbrian city reimagining itself with art after the 2009 earthquake

Dating back to the 13th century, L’Aquila has a rich cultural & architectural history, though it is commonly known outside of Umbria for the devestating 2009 earthquake which rocked the UNESCO Heritage Site to the core. Now, the city is rebuilding & reimagining, its streets, galleries & restaurants offering a perfect destination or base for a holiday across the Umbrian mountains.

SUSSEX: ART, ARCHITECTURE & WINE IN THE LANDSCAPE
A perfect location for a daytrip from London or a regional tour with vineyards, galleries & rolling hills

Sussex is the home to English wine, with 138 vineyards across its rolling hills. It makes a perfect daytrip or longer destination to explore the art, culture & architecture of the region, dotted amongst beautiful & historic landscapes. recessed.space visited a few to offer a glimpse of what’s on offer.

 

EDINBURGH: EXPLORING THE CITY THROUGH ITS ART GALLERIES
We visit the most architecturally interesting city art galleries as a way to explore the city

Edinburgh Art Festival spreads itself across a city already packed with culture & people over August. recessed.space visited, finding the festival a great excuse not only to discover a lot of excellent contemporary art, but also a great excuse to discover the city’s built history.

BARCELONA: FOR MODEL ARCHITECTURE FESTIVAL
Doubling up a city break with architecture & culture

The second edition of Barcelona’s architectural festival took place. Under the overarching theme of Radical Empathy, it encompassed experimental constructions, digital interventions, participatory discovery& looking at what the future of the Catalan city might look like.

MANCHESTER: URBAN CULTURE AT THE INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL
A full throttle cultural festival across the whole of the city

The 8th edition of the Manchester International Festival fills the city with art, performance, encounter & sound. It also sees the partial opening of Aviva Studios, the city’s newest arts centre which opens with a Yayoi Kusama inflatable installation. Elsewhere, the work of Ryan Gander, Tino Sehgal, Ryuichi Sakamoto & Risham Syed could be discovered.