Turner Prize nominee chosen to illuminate Southsea Castle lighthouse

The Grade II-listed structure has stood dormant since it was decommissioned in 2017. Its interior is in poor condition and would require major investment before it could reopen to the public.

The proposal by Portsmouth City Council would see Turner Prize nominee Nathan Coley attach an illuminated artwork to the railings at the top of the lighthouse.

Planning documents state the lights will switch on and off at a gentle speed, mimicking the sweep of a lighthouse beam. They will shine in warm white, no brighter than the festoon lighting already used along the seafront.

The illuminated text wrapping around the tower will read “SIDEWAYSOMEWHEREWITHOUTWITHIN” in block capital letters.

The words are inspired by a 1905 book by Sir Patrick Geddes called ‘The World Without, The World Within’ which records conversations he had with his children about science, nature and philosophy.

The sequence of letters forms seven words – Outwith, Within, Inside, Sideways, Somewhere, Herewith and Without – 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”.

Watch the magical light fountain at Southsea Castle in the video embedded in this story by My Portsmouth By Drone

The work is designed to be temporary, remaining in place for three years. It will be clamped to the railings with rubber gaskets, with cables fed through an existing opening so no damage is caused to the historic structure.

Harry Scott, seafront arts programme officer, said the project aims to “reactivate a dormant heritage structure” in a creative and respectful way.

He added it forms part of a wider Arts Council England-funded programme under the Southsea Coastal Scheme, which has also commissioned Simon Armitage’s Theatre of the Sea poem in brass on the seawall, John Maine’s Portsmouth Marker 2025 sculpture, and large-scale prints by local artists on windbreaks.

Historic England granted Scheduled Monument Consent in June 2025, while the King’s Harbour Master backed the scheme “in principle”, stating “they saw no issue with the proposal from a nautical standpoint”.

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