The theme of engineering is important to the Black Rock Brighton area as there are so many histories to tell and the engineering of the area means so much to so many visitors and residents of the city. Not only is there the oldest operating electric railway but it’s also the site of the longest running motoring event in the world. This sculpture collages photogrammetry scans of elements found at the site and 3D digital models from the sites historyFind out more about the different elements in Black Rock “Beachcombers: Engineering” and try to spot them in the sculpture.
List of Elements
Volk’s Electric Railway
Volk’s Electric Railway is a 140-year-old electric railway, and the oldest working electric railway in the world. Designed the Victorian inventor Magnus Volk it runs from Brighton Palace Pier to Black Rock station. A 3D model of the preserved carriage can be found in the sculpture.
Daddy Long Legs
The Brighton and Rottingdean Seashore Electric Railway known as Daddy Long Legs was a unique coastline railway that ran through the shallow coastal waters on Brighton seafront between 1896 and 1901. It was designed by Magnus Volk to extend his Volk’s Electric Railway from its terminus in Paston Place to the village of Rottingdean, and avoid difficult terrain. While the unique railway was popular and carried tens of thousands of passengers, it was ultimately abandoned to make room for new sea defences. 3D modelled elements of Daddy Long Legs can be found in the sculpture.
Parts from Genevieve
The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is the world’s longest running motoring event and the world’s largest gathering of veteran cars and participating cars must have been built before 1905. It takes place along Madeira Drive and cars line up from Brighton Palace Pier towards Black Rock
The car known as Genevieve has come to be inextricably linked with the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is a 1904 Darracq 12hp which was the star of the 1953 film Genevieve, in which the little twin-cylinder Darracq races against a Dutch 1905 Spyker from London to Brighton and back over the Veteran Car Run weekend. Genevieve subsequently became the public face of the veteran-car hobby and can be credited with igniting the first sparks of passion in many enthusiasts. The sculpture features numerous parts of Genevieve constructed from 3D digital models.
Old Windmills of Brighton
Brighton had many windmills, several of which used to line the cliffs on the eastern side of Brighton close to what is now Marine Parade and they featured in paintings of Brighton by the artists Turner and Constable. There are even records of windmills in Brighton going back hundreds of years and at least two were in operation when the French ransacked the town in 1514. The sails of the old windmills, reconstructed as a 3D model can be found in the sculpture.
Rampion Offshore Wind Farm
Rampion Offshore Wind Farm is the first offshore wind farm off the south coast of England. It has an installed capacity of 400 megawatts (MW) and will generate almost 1,400 Gigawatt hours (GWh) of power each year. This is equivalent to the amount of electricity used annually by almost 350,000 British homes, or around half the homes in Sussex. The wind farm is located in the English Channel between 13 and 20 kilometres (km) from the Sussex coast, and stretches from East Worthing in the west, to Brighton in the east. It covers an area of 72 square kilometres. The spinning blades of the wind turbines were recorded by the artists on a boat trip to the Rampion Offshore Wind Farm and have found their way into the sculpture.
The Big Apple Rollercoaster
Big Apple was a small roller coaster located at Peter Pan’s Playground in Brighton, East Sussex, England, UK. Many people have very fond memories of the ride which was sadly left to rust (as things on the coast can quickly do) and then repossessed by the local council in 2002. Shortly afterwards it was removed to make way for a new playground and more sustainable attractions. The roller coaster’s apple can be found on the sculpture.
Crambe maritima (Sea Kale)
Sea Kale has now been re-planted in a series of ‘wave’ design beds in the vegetated shingle at Black Rock. The unique design protects the young plants from harsh coastal conditions. As Sea Kale plants take five years to reach maturity the artists scanned plants a little further along the coast via the Undercliff Path towards Rottingdean. 3D scans of Sea Kale leaves adorn each of the three sculptures and these 3D models are also used as part of the free augmented reality app.
Driftwood
Sea-worn driftwood can be found all along Brighton beach especially after storms. The effect of the force of the sea on the knotty wood forms strange organic shapes. Each of the three sculptures is based on different pieces of driftwood found on the Black Rock beach.