Sand Sculpture 1999

"Low Tide 98"

Sand Sculpture at East Head, West Wittering, May 23 1998

Once a year Chichester Harbour Conservancy together with Artability, co-ordinated by RORE - River Ocean Research and Education - hold a sand-sculpture competition. This year saw more than 200 people turn up to create 18 superb sculptures on the beach at East Head, West Wittering on the day of the lowest tide of the month.

The weather was a little cloudy, breezey and cool but pleasant all the same for a mid May bank-holiday weekend.

The contestants arrived in dribs and drabs after the official midday starting time. Among these were four enthusiastic teams from Felpham Community College:

The teams were (in no particular order):
Team 1 - Richard Marsden (Head of Art Dept) with fellow art teacher Paul, aided by Paul's young daughter Carla.
Team 2 - Year 11 girls Amy, Claire, Debbie, Erin, Gemma, Karly and Sandra.
Team 3 - Year 11 boys Chris and Tim.
Team 4 - Year 8 girls Kelly and Tara.

The Team 1 teachers' great idea of recreating Botticelli's Venus went fine for a time until the figure of the lady herself was commenced. Unfortunately West Wittering sand is not very sticky and the figure refused to stay in one piece over a height of about two feet. A hastily arranged eleventh-hour compromise was decided upon that the figure would be created laying down in the shell rather than standing up as the Italian classicist had intended. See the result below.

The Team 2 girls had a more original and inventive idea of Neptune being towed by a trio of dolphins. They worked steadily and determindly throughout the afternoon on their creation and the superb result can be seen below. It was a little sad that this magnificent effort, which stood clearly in contention for winning, was not even mentioned by the judges at the prize-giving but the girls enjoyed creating the project anyway, despite the long wait for a result in the rapidly falling temperatures of late afternoon.

The lads, Team 3, started off with a great idea (whatever that was) and this great idea metamorphosed a number of times throughout the afternoon to end up being a superb, er, "Comedic Foot".

The Team 4 girls' effort was not always clear from the beginning but took shape slowly and surely as the afternoon progressed. They had come well prepared with various dyes and colours to liven up the appearance of the dull, grey sand and ended up with a slightly surreal but enjoyable piece which can also be seen below.

The winning sculpture, by the way, was a superb creation by a couple of adults (who appeared to have done this sort of thing before) of a monster that had crawled out of the sea and made its way up the beach only to expire in an exhausted heap on the sand. A number of other interesting and well executed ideas were also created and all concerned, as well as many of the curious onlookers, vowed to join in the action at the Low Tide 99 sculpture competition.

Miss Smith and Mr Marsden
look on as the Year 11 girls
get their creation underway

Kelly and Tara with

the beginnings of their

surreal construction

Paul's young daughter Carla
with bucket and spade
deciding what masterpiece
to help out with

Interested onlookers watch

as another sculpture takes

shape in the grey East Head sand

Miss Smith and former Felpham
College technician, Mac, collect
stones for the Felpham art department

Mr Marsden grapples with Venus

(alternative comments welcome!)

Miss Smith and Paul get to work
on the flowing locks of Venus

Chris and Tim work on what

had by this time developed into

a Comedic Foot after having

undergone several transformations

The year 11 girls pose with their creation of Neptune being towed
by a trio of dolphins, judged by most passers-by as being well
in the running as a winning entry

(Photo taken by Debbie Smith)

A rather low-level and

unclear picture of

Neptune and dolphins