The shifting
shoreline of the
Suffolk Coast
A Visual Commentary on
Coastal erosion & rising sea levels
A move to Pakefield, just south of Lowestoft in Suffolk, found Mary at the edge of landscape in 2017 and confronted with a different set of questions to those posed by the Waveney river valley, where she had previously lived and painted. Mary started to ask how she might communicate her concerns about coastal erosion and rising sea-levels, as the cliffs close to her are gouged and worn by the elements. The impermanent architectural forms provide rich symbolism, as human habitations perch on the edge of destruction and footpaths that she once walked with her children are no longer there. Mary wants to use her painterly language to highlight the issues that now confront humankind.
Sea-gouged cliffs, Covehithe
Mixed media 29cm x 29cm
The force of the elements
Mixed media 41.5cm x 56.5cm
Up-rooted Covehithe cliffs
Mixed media 42 x 58cm
‘Reclaimed’
Watercolour 29cm x 29cm
The ancient cliffs between Pakefield and Southwold stand as towering sentinels, their weathered faces etched with the marks of time. Rust-colored streaks, a palette of browns and ochres, and delicate patches of green lichen adorn the cliffs, while soft, pale-yellow sand blankets the beaches below. The relentless force of erosion has carved deep gouges into the cliffs, revealing layers of matter that have accumulated over millennia. Winter storms, with their fierce winds and crashing waves, strip away the cliffs’ protective layers, leaving behind exposed peat, fallen trees, and the remnants of once-familiar footpaths.
