Yesterday, I fancied a beach walk.  Bridlington, on the East Coast of Yorkshire was the destination I plumped for, so having suitably enthused my family, off we set. We parked at a spot about 2 and a half miles south of the town, with a view to a perambulation, followed by a ice cream / cup-o-tea (optional) followed by a walk back. Cracking afternoon (bit windy, but sunny), nice beach, good spirits.

We walked past the piece of “PUBLIC ART” on the way up. One of the things I’ve alluded before to about my personal enjoyment of art, is the first impression factor. A piece of art can be so powerful because of what it’s communicating when you first meet it.

I must confess, I didn’t realise it was art, at first impression. Approaching it from the south is perhaps not it’s intended viewpoint. We gave it a wide ish birth. I thought it was somewhere between something to do with RNLI and a construction area shrouded in orange netting.  It didn’t trigger an emotive response at this stage. It wasn’t until we’d had our ice cream / cup-o-tea (optional), and we were on our way back that I considered it as an art piece.

If you go to Lon.g 0.12′ W, Lat. 54.04’N as the nearby floor markings proclaim (assuming they are accurate), you’ll see said article of “PUBLIC ART”. It’s probably a space around 20m x 10m on a raised platform at the end of the Princess Mary Promenade. The materials and forms seem cribbed from modern day ship building. Spars, and slip proof flooring. Orange and white weather proof heavy duty paint. Girders and hull skin steel crafted into abstract forms. All fenced in and accessible from one or two vantage points. Given the integrity to ship building materials and overall theme, I wonder which ship building port this may be in honor of, and why it was built at Bridlington.

I couldn’t find any information about the artist – either at the site, or, as per a search of the internet. I’d love to know the thinking behind it. I must say, I’ve seen a lot of art over the years, and am a big fan of outdoor installations, but personally, didn’t feel the love with this. Apart from the “THIS STRUCTURE IS A PIECE OF PUBLIC ART” (how many times have I got to tell you) signage. Maybe that is the point.

Leading up to the piece though, walking South from the town, there’s a strip of words and markings along the new (ish)  Princess Mary Promenade. This is well worth a look, interesting, thought provoking and wholesomely in-tune to it’s environment. As a bonus you get some official “PIECE OF PUBLIC ART” at the end.