Roy Voss’ new commission The Way Things Are is a sculpture that stretches the length of the Pavilion’s ground floor gallery space, between the floor-to-ceiling windows and the thin columns that run along it.
Constructed from machined and push-jointed wood, the sculpture’s form is drawn from the artist’s memories and from Victorian lithographs. It is a delicate and precise skeletal form that conjures an idea of a pier.
The Way Things Are extends Voss’ interest in romantic longing that exists between desire and real experience. With the wild sea as a backdrop, Voss finds something simultaneously prosaic and profound about the British seaside pier. Offering a familiar but inscrutable promise of enjoyment, there is a simple impulse to reach the end, with the melancholic yet reassuring certainty of returning.
Plans for the De La Warr Pavilion originally included a pier: a two-level structure that led to a swimming pool out to the sea. Too expensive to pursue, the Pavilion’s unrealised pier is located between two real ones nearby: Eugenius Birch’s Victorian pier at Eastbourne, and dRMM’s contemporary pier at Hastings.
The Way Things Are is a co-commission between Berwick Visual Arts and Grundy Art Gallery in Blackpool, where it will tour next year.
Edison Edition (2017)
To celebrate his new commission The Way Things Are, artist Roy Voss has created Edison Edition, a very special limited edition sculpture, hand-turned in birch wood. The Way Things Are is a sculpture that represents Voss’s idea of a pier, and speaking of his edition he says:
“A lightbulb is often used to symbolise the moment at which we have an idea: my edition is an idea that is designed to be held, to be touched.”
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WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HASTINGS PIER CHARITY
We are delighted to be working in partnership with RIBA award-wining Hastings Pier Charity throughout the run of the exhibition to create a significant programme of events for adults, families and young people that takes place across each of our sites. For more information click here.
IDEA OF A PIER
The De La Warr Pavilion in partnership with Berwick Visual Arts and Grundy Art Gallery is inviting filmmakers of all ages to share their idea of a pier in our Short Film Challenge with a chance to win a £300 cash prize.
View the full brief here.
The artist’s previous solo exhibitions have taken place at Brontë Parsonage Museum, Fordham Gallery and Dilston Grove. Voss has also presented two solo exhibitions at Matt’s Gallery: Pine and All the World’s a Sunny Day.
Group exhibitions include Durden and Ray (LA), Horatio Junior, Modern Art Oxford, Spike Island, Whitechapel Gallery, Annely Juda Gallery and Baltic 39 amongst many others.
The artist’s work is in both public and private collections including the British Government Collection, the Aspen Collection of Contemporary Art, Penguin Books, Wordsworth Trust, Arts Council England and Contemporary Arts Society.
Voss studied at Goldsmiths College and is represented by Matts Gallery, London.
The Way Things Are is supported by Arts Council’s Grants for the Arts scheme
There are plenty of welcoming and good value B&Bs & boutique hotels in Bexhill. The De La Warr Pavilion regularly uses the following :
- By Rail
Direct trains go from London Victoria, Brighton and Ashford to Bexhill.
There are also trains from London Charing Cross, changing at St. Leonards Warrior Square and from London Bridge or Charing Cross going to Battle. Battle is only a short taxi journey away (15 mins approx).
Visit www.nationalrail.co.uk for up-to-date train travel information. - Taxis
Town Taxis: 01424 211 511
Parkhurst Taxis: 01424 733 456 - By Car
If driving from the London area:
Take the M25, then A21 to Hastings. Turn off at John‘s Cross and follow the signs to Bexhill.
OR
Take the A22 to Eastbourne, go across the Bishop roundabout to the A271 and follow the signs to Bexhill and the seafront. The De La Warr Pavilion is on the Marina.
From the Brighton area:
Follow the A27 out of Brighton until you arrive in Bexhill On Sea. - Parking
Please be aware the Rother District car park outside the De La Warr Pavilion operates paid parking until 7pm. After this time parking is free. There is also lmiited free car parking along the seafront.
Within the limits of this Grade One listed building, the De La Warr Pavilion strives to be fully accessible with a range of facilities to support your visit.
Assistance Dogs are permitted into the building.
Please contact the Box Office on 01424 229 111 to arrange a visit.
Facilities for disabled visitors
- Ramped access at the front of the building
- A low counter at the Box Office and Information Desk
- Disabled toilets on two floors
- A lift to all floors
- Accessible galleries on both floors
- An accessible Café
- Spaces for wheelchairs in the auditorium for seated events
- Ramped access in the auditorium for events during the day
- Ramped access into the Studio
- Two travel wheelchairs are available for use at the De La Warr Pavilion. To reserve, please call our box office and information desk on (01424) 229111 or ask a member of staff on arrival. The chairs are provided on a first come, first served basis and are intended for use inside the Pavilion. Please contact us for more information.
Facilities for blind or visually-impaired
- Large print season brochures
Facilities for the hard-of-hearing
- An T-Switch induction loop in some areas of the auditorium (please indicate when booking as this facility is not available on the balcony)
- British Sign Language interpretation tours of the building and exhibitions are available on request.