Ore inspiring

Martin Wainwright accompanies the Kirk family to Killhope, the first of the five museums short-listed for this year's award.

Worth more than 15 minutes

In the first of an occasional series of unusual and interesting short breaks, Tom Templeton goes on the Andy Warhol trail in Slovakia.

Winning arts and minds

We asked you to nominate your favourite family-friendly museums and galleries. After sifting through hundreds of entries, these are the five our judges shortlisted to road test in the search for a winner..

Art of living

Málaga pays tribute to a favourite son on Monday as the new Picasso museum opens. But this is just one of the reasons to fly south this winter, says Rose Rouse.

Altered images

Sebastião Salgado and Wim Wenders are just two of the artists who have left their mark on Valencia for its second biennial. Fiona Dunlop reports.

Setting the stage

Puccini's dream was to hear one of his operas in the open air of Torre del Lago, inspiration for some of his finest works. Now a Tuscan tradition, the festival in his honour is a truly Italian affair, says Ciar Byrne.

Creative use of green space

In the countryside near Moscow, Robin Buss visits the idyllic estate that inspired a generation of Russian writers, designers, artists and craftsmen.

The kids are alright

After Dea Birkett wrote about how her young son was asked to leave the Royal Academy for shouting, the huge response from readers encouraged the Guardian to launch the Kids in Museums campaign. Here, she outlines its main aims.

There are places I remember…

Tom Templeton gets a glimpse of the child inside the man as John Lennon's boyhood Liverpool semi opens its doors to the public.