MEDIA RELEASE: 7 September 2007
Announcing the arrival of the first Bathing Beauties™
on the Lincolnshire coast, UK.
Five Bathing Beauties™ Beach Huts for the 21st Century arrive on the Lincolnshire coast, UK.
The first five Bathing Beauties™ Beach Huts for the 21st Century are permanently installed and open for private viewing over Sat 22 and Sun 23 Sept 2007 at the Festival of Bathing Beauties™ , the UKs only Beach Hut Festival, taking place from Mablethorpe to Sutton-in-Sea, Lincolnshire coast, UK.
Lead Bathing Beauties™ artist Michael Trainor's Come Up and See Me, a two-storey hut inspired by a gin and tonic will be proudly situated on the Mablethorpe Promenade for a grand view of the wide-open spaces to be enjoyed from its impressive roof top featuring a giant light-up lemon. A new attraction for the town, The Mablethorpe Camera Obscura by Willett and Patteson will be situated close to Come Up and See Me, adjacent to the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institute) and offers visitors a more secretive view of the stunning coastline from its magical interior; Eyes Wide sHut by Feix and Merlin will be sited at 37 Mablethorpe South Promenade (amongst a series of current pagoda-style huts), framing the view out to sea; Jabba by i-am asssociates will occupy a newly created site especially suited to its 21st century cave form, in the sand dunes at Seaview Carpark, North Mablethorpe and the beautiful cedar Halcyon Hut by Atelier NU will have a home at 68 Sutton South Promenade, Sutton-on-Sea at the end of a row of existing huts, adjacent to the dunes.
These new Bathing Beauties™ will belong to East Lindsey District Council and available for daily public hire from Summer 2008.
Additional Bathing Beauties™ commissions, Oyster Pleasance by The Beach Hut Salon and A Hut For Gazing and Canoodling by we made that, will be installed at a future date in 2008, and a further three commissions including The Round and Round House, a new bird hide for Anderby Creek by Kingston and Weber of Intelligent Interiors plus two additional commissions (to be decided) will be installed in 2008.
Lead artist and curator Michael Trainor, who devised Bathing Beauties™ and has managed the initiative as a unique response to his brief as lead artist on the Lincolnshire coast says:
‘The Beach Hut is one of the few building forms which has been seriously overlooked by contemporary architects the world over. They are perceived as a treasured feature of our coastal landscape, as quintessentially British as fish and chips and the knotted hanky, but in reality are usually little more than a painted shed’. Michael Trainor, Lead Artist & Bathing Beauties™ Curator.
To mark the launch of these bold new beach huts, the very first Festival of Bathing Beauties™ took place from Mablethorpe to Anderby Creek over 22 - 23 Sept 2007, the UKs only Beach Hut Festival aims to become an annual event. The festival is being organised by Mantle Arts UK and visitors can expect: guided tours of the bold new Bathing Beauties™ beach huts by the artists and architects; a micro-exhibition of 1:15 scale models entered into the international design competitions including the prizewinning Lazy Susan by Thurgood and Hobson, winner of 'Best Scale Model'; local beach hut owners competitions for Best Exterior, Best Interior and Best Dressed for the Day; the new Mablethorpe Camera Obscura demonstrations; events and performances in huts, on the beach and on the seafront; a grand celebration with fireworks, firesculpture, musci and food; sculpture workshops; storytelling; puppet shows and much more.
The Bathing Beauties™ project includes the 21st Century Beach Hut Full Scale Commissions; The Festival of Bathing Beauties™ and Bathing Beauties™ On Show - an exhibition of scale models, which recently attracted record visitor numbers at its premiere at The Hub Craft & Design Centre, Sleaford, Lincolnshire, UK in 2007. It is hoped that the exhibition of over 100 scale models will tour in the UK during 2008 and will be the subject of future media releases. For archive information on the exhibition visit www.thehubcentre.org
The Bathing Beauties™ Beach Huts on the Lincolnshire coast will be available for daily hire from East Lindsey District Council, from around Summer 2008. Daily rates are expected to be in the region of 20 pounds to 25 pounds sterling, depending upon location. Public bookings are expected to open Summer 2008 and further news will be posted here as soon as it is available.
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For information about the artists / architects of the Bathing Beauties™ 21st Century Beach Hut Competition winners, please visit www.bathingbeauties.org.uk/news.htm
For information about the Festival of Bathing Beauties™ , visit www.bathingbeautiesfestival.org
For press images / interviews with lead artist Michael Trainor, contact michael@bathingbeauties.org.uk
For information/images regarding the Festival of Bathing Beauties™ contact Matthew Pegg at Mantle Arts UK on matthew@mantlearts.org.uk Tel: +44(0)1530 830811
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NOTES TO EDITORS
Bathing Beauties™ : The Bathing Beauties™ project was conceived by Michael Trainor in 2005 in response to his appointment by Lincolnshire County Council as lead artist on the Lincolnshire coast, UK. His big idea, Bathing Beauties™, put this superb by partly forgotten 10 mile stretch of Lincolnshire coastline from Mablethorpe to Anderby Creek on the worldwide map with the launch of international competitions which took place in 2006 for artists, architects and designers to 'Re-imagine the Beach Hut for the 21st Century'. Over 240 (1:15 scale model) entries were received from over 15 countries.
The success of Bathing Beauties™ idea has evolved into a series of strands which include:
Bathing Beauties™ : Re-imagining the Beach Hut for the 21st Century. Following the launch of international art, architecture and design competitions to re-imagine the beach hut for the 21st century, 4 winners were selected from over 240 entries from 15 countries, for full-scale commissions. The permanent installations will be available for daily hire from 24 Sept 2007. Two further commissions are in progress and two new commissions will be selected for build and installation in May 2008. Additionally, Michael Trainor's own Bathing Beauty™ , Come Up and See Me, inspired by a gin and tonic, will be installed from 22 Sept 2007 and available for daily hire from Summer 2008.
Bathing Beauties™ On Show - A Hub Exhibition: A World Premiere in Lincolnshire, UK. Over 100 scale models selected from the original entries, which re-invent the British Beach Hut for the first time in 300 years took place from 2 June - 2 Sept 2007 at The Hub Centre for Craft & Design. This exhibition is now closed but available for tour in 2008, pending funding.
Festival of Bathing Beauties™ (FOBB): The UKs only Beach Hut Festival. Along the 10mile Lincolnshire coastal stretch from Mablethorpe to Anderby Creek, the first festival will take place over 22 - 23 Sept 2007 and aims to become an annual event. This festival will celebrate the launch of the bold new Bathing Beauty™ permanent beach huts and include temporary activities - awards to existing beach hut owners, temporary art huts and odd things in beach huts!
The Star of The East: Michael Trainor's dramatic permanent light and shadow sculpture for Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire coast, UK. (launched in July 2007).
The aim of Bathing Beauties™ project is to create a linear gallery of bold new beach huts and other seaside structures with innovative architecture as the linking theme. Nine of the designs entered wil be realised full-scale and these innovative new beach huts will be available for daily hire from the East Lindsey District Council. The Lincolnshire coast will be the first area in the UK to see significant re-imagining of traditional seaside architecture – this innovative linear gallery will unfold over a period of two to three years. The Lincolnshire Coastal Art Project is part financed by European Regional Development Fund. Partners are Lincolnshire County Council, East Lindsey District Council and the local parish councils.
Michael Trainor Biography: Bathing Beauties™ Lead Artist and Project Curator Michael Trainor is a professional artist based in Manchester, UK. Michael has been involved in over 60 temporary and permanent works of art in public spaces including They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? – the world’s shiniest artwork and largest mirrorball for Blackpool seafront. www.greatpromenadeshow.co.uk. Michaels current projects in the UK include: Bathing Beauties™ , Art Meets Architecture on the Lincolnshire coast (including his own beach hut design ‘Come Up and See Me’ will be installed on the Lincolnshire Coast for 22 Sept 2007).
And, over on the west coast of Great Britain - Michael is presently working in Liverpool on Garston People's Palace, a major new temporary artwork for Liverpool Capital of Culture and Liverpool Biennial 2008.
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Bathing Beauties
For information, images, interviews and background to Bathing Beauties™ project
Contact Lesa Dryburgh, Press Manager (Bathing Beauties and Michael Trainor)
Tel: +44 (0)161 248 6405 Email: press@bathingbeauties.org.uk
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