Beaches became open-air galleries in a month-long arts festival to celebrate the UK’s coastal beauty – and spotlight the climate crisis
Sculpture, storytelling and soundscapes have illuminated UK beaches from Scotland to Norfolk in a month-long arts festival celebrating the beauty of our coastlines, and highlighting their fragility in the face of climate change.
Beach of Dreams, backed by Historic England and Art Council England and presented by arts charity Kinetika, ran from May to 1 June featuring eight commissioned art works.
It kicked off in Tilbury, home to the so-called ‘beach of broken dreams’ – a stretch of foreshore on the Thames Estuary that’s awash with debris dating back to Roman times – and concluded in Great Yarmouth.
Works included a 100-metre tidal sculpture built by artist Julie Brooks who worked alongside communities in Fife, a photo exhibition shedding light on hidden marine habitats in south Tyneside, and a sonic treasure hunt of coastal sounds captured around Colwyn Bay.
The Beach of Dreams silks formed a national artwork made up of 838 naturally dyed silk pennants, each representing a personal story of someone’s connection with the coast. In Findhorn, Scotland, arts producer Findhorn Bay Arts worked with artist Amy Neville of community focused arts organisation Naturally Useful, artist Eve Mosher and the Wild Things! Environmental Education in Action charity to guide local people into making the pennants.
More than 50 people took part in workshops to design and produce the batik-decorated art works, inspired by the flora and fauna of the nearby coast, before joining in a final promenade from Burghead to Findhorn. “The ocean reminds me that everything is always in change,” wrote one of the Findhorn participants. “I am shaped. And also, there is a consistency in the hug of the sea. I breathe in. I breathe out.”
Although the main event has run its course, there’s still time to catch the grand finale in Dorset this September when an immersive visual art performance will weave its way through audiences on Weymouth beach as part of the Inside Out Dorset festival.
“Through Beach of Dreams, we are journeying from the Beach of Broken Dreams in Thurrock to shine a spotlight on the coastal gems, organisations, people and projects across the UK that are creating positive change and inspiring hope,” said Kinetika artistic director Ali Pretty.
Main image: Paul Campbell Photography
-
90 +
Beach of Dreams featured more than 90 artworks, events and walks in total -
8
Eight artist commissions – spanning sculpture, soundscapes, textiles, and performance –illuminated the UK’s coastal landscapes, exploring the heritage, culture and future of these ‘vital spaces’ -
838
The Beach of Dreams silks formed a national artwork made up of 838 naturally dyed silk pennants, each representing a personal story and a climate commitment to the coast
Be part of the solution
Positive News is helping more people than ever to get a balanced and uplifting view of the world. While doom and gloom dominates other news outlets, our solutions journalism exists to support your wellbeing and empower you to make a difference towards a better future.
But our reporting has a cost and, as an independent, not-for-profit media organisation, we rely on the financial backing of our readers. If you value what we do and can afford to, please get behind our team with a regular or one-off contribution.
Give once from just £1, or join 1,500+ others who contribute an average of £3 or more per month. You’ll be directly funding the production and sharing of our stories – helping our solutions journalism to benefit many more people.
Join our community today, and together, we’ll change the news for good.
