The British coast contains numerous oddities, including some eerie statues that can only be seen during low tide
Antony Gormley is perhaps best known for creating the Angel of the North statue, but he’s created several other works of art, one of which is located on the Kent coastline.
One rather eerie statue, in Margate, was installed on Fulsam Rock Beach in 2017, as part of Gormley’s Another Time series, which saw 100 statues placed around the world. Three of which are currently on display in Kent.
Those hoping to take a glimpse of the cast-iron statue should be sure to check tidal times. The solitary figure becomes visible in the hours surrounding low tide and is completely covered at high tide.
Margate’s Another Time figure is located near the Turner Contemporary Art Gallery and was installed in collaboration with them. Two other statues from the series can be seen in nearby Folkestone, which was placed there as part of The Creative Folkestone Triennial in 2017.
One of which can be seen within the arches of Coronation Parade at Sunny Sands Beach, while the other is located at the loading bay of Folkestone Harbour Arm. Like at Fulsam Rock, the visibility of these statues is dependent on the whims of the tides.
The statues, which were created from a cast of Gormley’s own body, were intended to “bear witness to what it is like to be alive and alone in space and time” and to “celebrate the still and silent nature of sculpture. The work is designed to be placed within the flow of lived time.”
The statues, while unique, have been described as “haunting” and “mysterious” by some visitors. Anton Smith wrote on TripAdvisor about the statue in Margate: “Really good Antony Gormley statue on the beach behind the Turner Gallery. The usual Gormley figure but completely alone (unlike the army on Crosby Beach near Liverpool) stoically getting drowned and uncovered twice a day, covered in goodness knows what at the end of the seaweed-covered breakwater.
“Surprisingly haunting and emotive. Definitely worth searching out if you are “doing arty” or just love Gormley’s work while in Margate, but check tide times to avoid disappointment.”
James Stephen Medes described one of the statues in Folkestone in a Google Review: “Another wondrous and mysterious experience from the hand of Antony Gormley. Walk along the harbour arm, the statue is down some steps at sea level – depending on the tide!”
There are plenty of other submerged and/or coastal statues in Kent. One of which is Alluvia by Jason de Caires Taylor, which can be found in Canterbury.
These cast cement and glass resin sculptures of two women are fixed to the bed of the River Stour. Visibility of these depends on the time of day, and the weather conditions.
Another coastal statue is the Folkestone Mermaid, unsurprisingly located in Folkstone, which despite its name is not of a mermaid but rather a woman sitting on the beach’s rocks overlooking the sea.
