Scallop by Maggi Hambling
Scallop by Maggi Hambling, Aldeburgh Beach, Suffolk. Made in 10mm stainless steel celebrating British composer Benjamin Britten.
Fabricated by a local craftsman whose signature sits next to the artist’s; Maggi Hambling referred to the scallop as ‘a conversation with the sea’.
Whatever associations the form may have with listening, with the sounds and forms of nature, and with the words from Peter Grimes punctured into the rim of the shell: ‘I hear those voices that will not be drowned’; its form and positioning caused a mixed response from the local people.
Arguments ranging from objecting to the positioning as it spoilt the natural wildness of the place, to its form being inappropriate, scallops not being associated with shingle beaches. Whatever the pros and cons it can be seen at holiday times to be a place that families gather to hide behind, to climb on, shelter under and generally hang about. Decide for yourself, it can be found on the walk from Aldeburgh to Thorpeness on the Suffolk coast.