Marine and Green - Together Be Seen

Working with Sidmouth Coastal Community Hub, our public art display runs in parallel with South West Water’s ‘Turning the Tide’ work to enhance the town’s sewage network and aims for cleaner blue waters and a more sustainable green environment.  A selection of works by British artist David Shrigley, Italian artist Tomaso Marcolla, Brazilian and local artists is presented, confronting head on the issue of climate change with both humour and bold statements.

Attention is also brought to the work of many whose volunteering, cultural and creative events and blue and green endeavours across the ecosystem of the Sid Valley, embody the protective spirit of Sidmouth.

The exhibition also presents COP30 COP 30 a visual response to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in November 2025 in Belém, Para.  Collective and individual COP30 artworks from 20 local and Brazilian artists is featured emphasising that the world is not yet where it needs to be.

Elsewhere the exhibition showcases ink, paint, print, slogan style stickers and digital works.  The collection, through its environmental pictures, posters, haikus, memes and maps, both celebrates what is cherished and cautions what must be conserved.

Marine and Green – Together Be Seen - focused on the wellbeing of people and planet, is both an exploration of feelings and responses and a hopeful visual call to action.

Turning the Tide 

South Wester Water's improvement project helping to deliver cleaner beaches and rivers in Sidmouth through their action on storm overflows. Whilst the work to build a new storage tank to hold waste water is taking place, the Ham, Sidmouth - our local recreational green space, is closed off. South West Water asked SSA and SCCH to produce an art exhibition for the hoardings surrounding the temporary building site.  The project is funded by South West Water.

This collaborative curation of artworks is designed to provoke thought, promote action,  highlight the amazing marine and natural environment work, care and concern that is Sidmouth and to brighten up everyone's day.

David Shrigley - Marine and Green Sidmouth Selection

Known for his wit, absurdist and satirical style, the artist's reflections on the art world are often provocative, his work is accessible inspiring creativity and he is outspoken about the value of art in education and its role in society.  His thought-provoking paintings, almost childlike, often of everyday people and objects, are paired with humour and darkly comic observations that are both amusing and sharply insightful.

An alumnus of Glasgow School of Art, David is now based in Brighton, having lived and worked locally he has established a strong connection with Sidmouth. As a Trustee and founding member of Sidmouth School of Art, he plays an instrumental role in SSA’s creative art projects and is a committed advocate for art in the community and its wellbeing power.

Here we present 5 artworks by David Shrigley, a special environmental selection of the artist’s work that are at once dark, stark and funny.

Tomaso Marcolla 

The endangered planet provides inspiration for Italian artist Marcolla to portray the reality of human behaviour spotlighting the consequences for people and the environment.

A range of his “Poster” works, a fusion of graphic design, painting, digital art and illustration, prompts reflection on environmental protection.

The ”Global Warming” graphic posters, created with photography, drawing and computer graphics, represent the artists’ treatment of the effects of global warming. Issues such as water scarcity, access to water, the amount of water to produce meat and privatisation of water sources, are simply presented with impact to be easily understood.

Community Marine and Green

A selection of maps, signs, information boards and calls to action to take care of the environment sit within the exhibition, a demonstration of the proactive groups in the community, who work so diligently and creatively to make our 'home' better. 

Alongside the maps and poster that showcase the variety of 'blue' and 'green' work that goes on in Sidmouth through myriad projects and organisations, sit "River" and "Priceless", artworks that were created originally for Sidmouth Wallspace with strong messages of care and concern for the planet.

Installation work in progress...