Wednesday, 9:00am
19 February 2025
Supergraphics in Newhaven
Seventeen specially commissioned supergraphics breathe new life into the port town of Newhaven for the Look Again festival
Lying at the mouth of the River Ouse, the Sussex port town of Newhaven recently received a bright splash of paint and colour with the addition of seventeen specially commissioned murals in different areas of the town, writes Amy Henry.
Creative contributions were made by notable graphic artists, illustrators and street artists, including Anthony Burrill (see ‘Act local, think stencil’), Annie Frost Nicholson, Amber Elise, Supermundane (see ‘Untitled tiles’), Eelus and See Creatures. More than 70 per cent of the artists hail from Sussex.
Top. Mural by David Bain and his team, based on Newhaven locals.
Right. Paul Farrell mural installed by Many Hands Studio. Photos by Joshua Redfern.
These so-called supergraphics were inspired by Newhaven’s landscape, history and community. The concept of supergraphics was originally explored by American designer and architect Barbara Stauffacher Solomon (1928-2024) in the 1960s when she mixed large-scale abstractions with hard edge Swiss graphics. You can see more examples of supergraphics (for the Tyne and Wear Metro) in the current edition of Eye magazine (no. 107 vol. 27) in a Reputations interview with Margaret Calvert.
A beautiful, tiled artwork titled Land & Sea by illustrator and artist Rob Lowe aka Supermundane (see review in Eye 107).
A joy and nature-inspired mural by Lee Eelus on the side of Wave Leisure Trust in Newhaven.
Incorporated into the communities ‘Look Again’ festival, the two-month long events were all about spreading joy and inspiration. Another aim of the festival was to make art accessible for everyone within Newhaven, with more than 3000 local people involved.
Mural by Bec Dennison aka Bullet on a String titled Stripes and Stars which features a resident’s beloved cat, installed by Dennison’s all-female team. Photo: Johnnie Bassett.
A 40m-wide mural created by Anthony Burrill on St Luke’s Lane in Newhaven, installed by Many Hands Studio.
Cosmic Vision mural by Amber Elise with a poster by Annie Frost Nicholson: Dance! Here.
Amy Henry, designer, writer, educator, London
Eye is the world’s most beautiful and collectable graphic design journal, published for professional designers, students and anyone interested in critical, informed writing about graphic design and visual culture. It is available from all good design bookshops and online at the Eye shop, where you can buy subscriptions and single issues.