The Pier

Uploaded by:	168_seconds
Country:	United Kingdom
Website:	http://www.glennrossington.co.uk

A memorable date for the people of Weston Super Mare is 28th July 2008. Their iconic seaside Grand Pier set ablaze, almost burning to the ground. All that remained was a skeletal structure similar to Brighton’s West Pier (which caught fire in 2003).

Moving forward to 10am on 23rd October 2010, and after a £39million refurbishment, Weston Super Mare’s Grand Pier reopened during a simple ceremony. The day was marred slightly by torrential rain, but still, thousands of people queued to be among the first to set foot on the redeveloped structure.

This celebratory spirit is a stark contrast to the decline in interest over the last 30 years of the British seaside pier. Many structures have fallen into a state of disrepair, or have completely disappeared, meaning that people are oblivious to the fact that one existed there in the first place. It is difficult to imagine a pier in a place like Scarborough’s North Bay unless you had not looked at old photographs.

With the rebuilt and redeveloped pier opening in Weston Super Mare, it was an opportunity to see a 21st century designed building sat on top of a classic structure. Would it be able to blend into the landscape like the old building? Or would it stick out like a sore thumb?

I took my images a week after the official grand reopening. My intention was not to show how popular it was at that moment of reinvention, but to see how it lies within the landscape after the ‘commotion of newness’ has died down. Would it still offer the traditional views of the ocean and the landscape? Would the leisurely stroll above the waves provide that same healthier lifestyle options of the Victorians? I leave it to you the viewer to decide whether it does or not, both through the images conveyed here, and of course by paying it a visit yourself.

This work will be on show at The Public Gallery in West Bromwich (April - May Dates TBC)