You may be forgiven for thinking the railway bridge over Southend High Street had disappeared over night.
But take a closer look and it’ still there, hidden by an art work which almost camouflages the building by recreating its surroundings – hopefully no seagulls miss it and crash into it!
As parts of its annual railway bridge commission, Focal Point Gallery has unveiled a new site-specific artwork by Janette Parris.
The work, titled ‘A view without the Bridge’, almost obscures it from vision by mimicking what youl would be able to see if it were not there.
The view from the other side. Photo: Anna Lukala
Inspired by Southend and everyday encounters as the basis for the work, Parris uses humour, digital drawing, animation, songs and conversations to question what might be taken for granted in the urban environment.
The piece illustrates characters who can be seen to say, in cartoon-like speech bubbles, “Look, it was there yesterday!” and “It’s gone Frank, it’s gone…”
The bridge, pre-artwork. Photo: Google Maps
Parris has exhibited widely nationally and internationally for 25 years and is the founder of ‘Arch’ an established comic which was included in the largest UK comics exhibition in the British Library “Comics Unmasked”
Focal Point Gallery is holding a free online talk about the piece with the artist on Wednesday, August 4 at 7.00pm. It’s free, and members of the public can sign-up at: fpg.org.uk/events
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