Celebrate spring at a colourful Spanish fi esta, or choose from some of Europe’s other outstanding exhibitions and events
3 Barcelona
Fiesta de
San Medir
Barcelona’s Fiesta de San Medir kicks March off in sweet style. This annual institution features a colourful parade and spectacular fireworks, but the real draw is the cascade of candy that’s flung into the crowds waiting on the Calle Grande de Gracia. barcelona
Known for his haunting, almond-eyed portraits, Modigliani is one of the most important artists of the 20th century. Focusing on his time in Paris, the Thyssen-Bornemisza’s exhibition will show how his work was influenced by the likes of Cézanne and Picasso.
7 (until 8 June)
Florence China: At the Court of the Emperors
In Florence and fancy a break from the Renaissance? There’ll be more than a hundred artefacts from the Tang Dynasty on show at the Palazzo Strozzi. The exhibition will include gold and silver pieces, beautiful sculpture, and striking terracotta statues.
Now into its fourth year, Athens Fashion Week is fast gaining momentum, pulling in scores of designers, buyers and journalists, as well as thousands of visitors. This season, expect to see chic Athenians channel Maria Callas and up the glamorous ante.
On the back of their latest album, Supermoon, Marie Daulne and her band will be performing at the Rockefeller Music Hall. Zap Mama’s music is best described as a blend of African song, reggae, rap and soul, and has won them dedicated fans on both sides of the Atlantic.
The Sugababes bring their smouldering soul-inflected pop to the Royal Albert Hall this month. The group, who’ve become Britain’s biggest female act this century, released their fifth album, Change, last autumn, so expect plenty of new stuff as well as old favourites.
André Heller’s exuberant African-themed circus pitches up in Vienna. The dizzying array of acrobatic skill on display includes unicycling basketball players, a contortionist who can slip his body through a tennis racket, and women who juggle tables with their feet.
Lyon’s international fair pulls in huge crowds every year, and it’s little wonder, with stalls selling everything from garden furniture to handicrafts, food to flowers. And if these strike you as prosaic, look out for the folklore-themed stalls instead.
27 (until 8 April)
Brussels Brussels International Festival
of Fantastic Film
The BIFFF is probably best known for discovering some of modern cinema’s most influential directors. But as well as the leftfield film programme, there’s a a Manga market, a body-painting contest, and a vampires’ ball.
If you’re itching to splurge after abstaining all Lent, where better to head than Berlin? Here, they mark the clock change by keeping the shops open until midnight. This year, they expect more than 600,000 customers to descend on the city.
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