Southsea castle lighthouse glows again with new artwork
Southsea Castle’s iconic lighthouse has been lit up for the first time since 2017, thanks to a new artwork by Turner Prize nominee Nathan Coley.
The lighthouse was taken out of use eight years ago, but it is now glowing again after the installation of a contemporary illuminated artwork wrapped around the lantern gallery at the top of the tower.
.jpg?crop=3:2,smart&trim=&width=640&quality=65)
The artwork features seven overlapping words: OUTWITH, WITHIN, INSIDE, SIDEWAYS, SOMEWHERE, HEREWITH and WITHOUT.
The piece uses Coley’s trademark text-based style, with words drawn from a range of sources. For this work, the phrases are partly inspired by a 1905 essay by Sir Patrick Geddes, The World Without, The World Within – Sunday Talks With My Children.
The sequence of letters forms seven words, OUTWITHINSIDEWAYSOMEWHEREWITH, each sharing its beginning or end with the word before or after, and will be illuminated one at a time in turn.
For example, the slow fade up of “OUTWITH” will fade out and be followed by the fade up of “WITHIN”, creating what the artist describes as a “poetic rhythm and dynamic”.
Nathan Coley said: “Above all I wanted to honour the lighthouse. Although it was decommissioned in 2017, the tower still sits proudly and elegantly on the edge of Southsea Castle, visible from both land and sea. It’s been exciting to give power back to the lighthouse which has sat dormant for all these years.
“As the text travels around the lighthouse, it creates a sense of movement which echoes the blinking of the original light that would have been seen out to sea when the lighthouse was a working structure.”
The artwork forms part of a wider public art programme linked by the theme Navigate. The programme is designed to enhance the new Southsea Coastal Scheme sea defences.
It was commissioned by Portsmouth City Council with funding from Arts Council England. Its launch also coincides with the start of Portsmouth’s centenary celebrations, marking 100 years since the city was granted city status.
Council leader Cllr Steve Pitt said: “It’s fantastic that Nathan Coley has created a new piece especially for Southsea Castle Lighthouse.
“The lighthouse is a popular local landmark, and this project is about using contemporary art to bring it back to life.
“The piece will be visible from along the beautiful new promenades and is a great addition to the coastal scheme. Portsmouth’s identity as a cultural hub continues to grow and I hope that this artwork will help to put the city on the map as a cultural destination.”