Arts and Creativity

Writer John Higgs invites you to step into his TARDIS on a journey to discover how ideas emerge and survive despite the odds, and why a wonderful wandering time traveller means so much to so many.

Explore the impact of air pollution on our health through talks and a special meditative musical performance by Sonic Threads.

Join us for the launch of a thought-provoking exhibition by an eclectic group of artists exploring the theme of 'fragments' in varied media.

Join us at a creative workshop and find out about Common Ground, a University of York-funded initiative providing music workshops for the refugee and asylum seeker community.

Take a behind-the-scenes look at the legendary British Vogue magazine as author Julie Summers presents a beautifully illustrated talk about its fascinating and glamorous history.

What sort of music did diarist Jane Ewbank hear and perform as a well-to-do young woman living in early 19th-century York? Join musicologist Rachel Cowgill for a new take on Georgian York.

Join us for an interactive role-playing game session set in Renaissance York, featuring women printers operating in the city.

Our immersive workshop focuses on the materials of Austen and Turner’s creativity. Use watercolour paints, inks and textiles, and learn about their innovative techniques.

Explore the skills and techniques of bookbinding with archive conservator Catherine Firth and book and paper conservator Emma Lloyd-Jones.

Our immersive workshop focuses on the materials of Austen and Turner’s creativity. Use watercolour paints, inks and textiles, and learn about their innovative techniques.

Discover the benefits of community singing and acting at an event combining speaking/singing performance, documentary footage of singing groups and live analysis of vocal recordings.

Enjoy a live performance of an experimental, multi-media composition based on the mathematics used to crack the enigma code during World War II.

Explore the power of musical touch through performance and a hands-on workshop with pianist Catherine Laws, theatre practitioner Teresa Brayshaw and psychologist Natalie Bowling.

Take a journey into the soul of Northumbria with writer Jake Morris-Campbell as he seeks to understand the deep past and uncertain future of his homeland.

Join author Jean Strouse for the riveting story of portrait artist John Singer Sargent and his relationship with an eminent Edwardian family, the Wertheimers.

Rebecca Earle of the University of Warwick reveals how, alongside painters, patrons and dealers, privateers formed part of Europe’s early modern art world.

Find out about how contemporary artist Lela Harris and writer Rommi Smith create new work through creative practices in connection with Jane Austen and JMW Turner.

Take a journey through the backstreets of Asia at this in conversation event with writer Shamini Flint, best known for her Inspector Singh Investigates series.

Join the conversation as artists and scientists discuss the importance of collaboration across disciplines for biodiversity change.

From emojis to like Hello Kitty, philosopher Simon May explores the worldwide obsession with cuteness and what it reveals about our age.

From Europe's earliest wallpaper to printing on ice, join Helen Smith, Director of Thin Ice Press: the York Centre for Print, to learn about the history of printing in York.

Join us at the Interactive Media Showcase and enjoy the phenomenal work created by students from the University of York’s School of Arts and Creative Technologies.

Enjoy a rich soundscape across a lake near the Ron Cooke Hub which uses a robotic piano, machine learning and ambisonic surround sound to explore the fragile nature of human relationships.

Join us at the Interactive Media Showcase and enjoy the phenomenal work created by students from the University of York’s School of Arts and Creative Technologies.

Visit a letterpress display reimagining women’s knowledge about plants. Join in a botanical printing activity and discover a book of flowers written for a queen.

Find out how Jessie’s Fund is playing an important role in giving children access to music therapy and creative music-making through a talk, film clips and performance.

York Lindy invites you to a free one-day swing dance festival, featuring a pop-up exhibition, dance classes, history and music talks.

Join historian Tracy Borman as she unlocks the mysteries of Holbein’s enigmatic artwork The Ambassadors, revealing the secrets it tells us about the Tudor court.

Visit a letterpress display reimagining women’s knowledge about plants. Join in a botanical printing activity and discover a book of flowers written for a queen.

Enjoy a Playback Theatre performance which takes its inspiration from the histories of disabled people in York and encourages attendees to share their own stories from 2025.

Writer Ian Leslie traces the twists and turns of John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s relationship through the music it produced, offering insights into the nature of creativity, collaboration and human connection.

Enjoy a rich soundscape across a lake near the Ron Cooke Hub which uses a robotic piano, machine learning and ambisonic surround sound to explore the fragile nature of human relationships.

Join us at the Interactive Media Showcase and enjoy the phenomenal work created by students from the University of York’s School of Arts and Creative Technologies.

Join a workshop led by Lottie Adcock of Dance the Past and take a trip through time to learn some of the most scandalous dances in history.

Celebrate the comedic genius of Ray Galton and Alan Simpson (Hancock’s Half Hour and Steptoe and Son) at an event showcasing the archive acquired by the University of York in 2024.

Modesty, flamboyance, filth. Join writer Nina Edwards as she unravels the intimate narratives woven into the fabric of our most personal garments.

Enjoy a rich soundscape across a lake near the Ron Cooke Hub which uses a robotic piano, machine learning and ambisonic surround sound to explore the fragile nature of human relationships.

Join us to celebrate the passion and creativity of the filmmakers of the future at the LUMA Film Festival, hosted by University of York students.

Find out how researchers study the sounds of the past with Mariana López of the University of York.

Enjoy a rich soundscape across a lake near the Ron Cooke Hub which uses a robotic piano, machine learning and ambisonic surround sound to explore the fragile nature of human relationships.

Join us to celebrate the passion and creativity of the filmmakers of the future at the LUMA Film Festival, hosted by University of York students.

Join Jahnavi Phalkey, Founding Director of Science Gallery Bengaluru, as she delves into the emergence of big science in 20th-century India and shares her vision for the scientific future of the country.

Take a journey across time and space, and explore the history of medieval Britain through the biographies of illuminated manuscripts and their creators with author Michelle P. Brown.

Celebrating the 200th anniversary of the modern railway, rail historian Roger Backhouse examines how railway posters developed from the mid-19th century.

Join Barbara Brend, a specialist in the field of Persian painting, as she examines two manuscripts illustrated in late 15th-century Herat.

Enjoy a rich soundscape across a lake near the Ron Cooke Hub which uses a robotic piano, machine learning and ambisonic surround sound to explore the fragile nature of human relationships.

Discover the power of creative writing to foster connection and community for those with lived experience of mental ill health at our interactive workshop.

Conservator Alison Gilchrist discusses the significant collection of stained glass at All Saints and its recent restoration, before leading a tour of the windows.

Explore the hidden treasures of the University of York’s art collection on a guided walk with its inaugural curator, Helena Cox.

Join us for an unforgettable evening as Syncretism presents a mesmerising concert with spectacular lighting, immersive projections, captivating dance performances and epic music.

Join us to celebrate the passion and creativity of the filmmakers of the future at the LUMA Film Festival, hosted by University of York students.

Enjoy a rich soundscape across a lake near the Ron Cooke Hub which uses a robotic piano, machine learning and ambisonic surround sound to explore the fragile nature of human relationships.

Enjoy a filmed performance of Clay Fever and accompanying talk with pottery handling by York Museums Trust curator Helen Walsh and playwright Bridget Foreman.

Enjoy a rich soundscape across a lake near the Ron Cooke Hub which uses a robotic piano, machine learning and ambisonic surround sound to explore the fragile nature of human relationships.

Join our interactive workshop and learn to print and sing tonic solfa - a system of musical notation popular in 19th-century Britain and used by missionaries throughout the world.

Join leading British origami creator Lee Armstrong as he explores the global history of origami.

Come along to St Olave’s Church to celebrate all things time related. Enjoy a series of short talks during the day, and poetry and music presented by Navigators Art & Performance in the evening.

Come along to St Olave’s Church to celebrate all things time related. Enjoy a series of short talks during the day, and poetry and music presented by Navigators Art & Performance in the evening.

Join us as the winners of the 17th annual York Design Awards are revealed.