‘Wild Eye’ art and nature project proposes new seawatching station for Marine Drive, Scarborough

As part of the proposals, the existing damaged shelter on Marine Drive—adjacent to the Yorkshire Water plant complex—will be repaired and renewed.

The location is one of the best places on the English coast to see dolphins and porpoises with more than 350 sightings in the last year.

Free seawatching telescopes (including a wheelchair-accessible telescope) will be installed at the elevated edge of the shelter forecourt, and Turner Prize-winning artist Jeremy Deller will create a new durable mosaic artwork inspired by both Scarborough’s sea life and its Roman past.

Deller plans to work with a professional mosaic artist—Yorkshire-based Coralie Turpin—to create a fragmentary Roman-style floor mosaic which references Scarborough’s Roman past and the amazing wealth of wildlife in its seas.

It will be accompanied by information panels (with links to digital media) along the wall at the back of the shelter to help people identify the wildlife they see and to learn more about the amazing wildlife both above and below the sea.

During May 2024 there will be free workshops with local primary school classes, in conjunction with Big Ideas by the Sea Festival and The Big Dig, to visit the Roman remains at the castle, look out for dolphins and porpoises from the headland and to work with Coralie Turpin to create their own sea-themed Roman mosaic to take back to their school.

Further free mosaic workshops are planned as part of a seawatching day in August as part of National Marine Week and charity organisation, Wetwheels Yorkshire, will also be using their accessible boat to take young disabled people from a local school on several marine wildlife viewing trips.

Rachael Bice, Chief Executive Officer at Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, said: “Providing inspiring ways for people to experience and have a deeper connection with nature is a surefire way to build better protection and care – this beautiful sea watching hub will be a wonderful way for people to enjoy a coastal view and look out for Yorkshire’s marine wildlife.”

Stuart Baines, Sea Watch Foundation Yorkshire Area Coordinator and Editor Scarborough Porpoise Facebook Page said: “The seas off Marine Drive are visited by Harbour Porpoise, Bottlenose Dolphin and Minke Whale (Cetaceans) on a very regular basis – in the last twelve months cetaceans have been recorded on over 350 occasions feeding in or travelling through the area visible from the proposed location.

“In my opinion the Marine Drive at Scarborough is amongst the best locations in England to observe fantastic marine wildlife.”

Wild Eye is a collaboration between Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and art/science organisation Invisible Dust.

The seawatching station and artwork will connect with existing Wild Eye sites at Whitby Harbour and Scarborough Castle, which feature sculptural works by artists Juneau Projects and Ryan Gander respectively, in addition to linking with two other new sites - Paul Morrison’s sculpture now installed at Scarborough Harbour and Emma Smith’s community co-produced sculptural works on the Cinder Track in Scarborough, due later in 2024.

Along with a digital artwork by Shezad Dawood, Marine Drive will complete the series of exciting, thought provoking artworks that connect people to the natural world.