Flight of the Langoustine

Flight of the Langoustine will be the second sculpture for Hove Plinth, planned to be installed spring 2020. It is created by Brighton based sculptor Pierre Diamantopoulo. The sculpture, selected from our first call to artists, was a clear favourite with the public. It is made up of four life-size bronze figures flying through a steel grid. It was inspired by a discarded and mangled lobster pot that the artist had found on Brighton beach. In his imagination, the washed-up object that had seemingly helped the lobsters escape, translated itself into a wider story of human exodus and release - a dash for freedom. Diamantopoulo describes the figures as "at once profound, frivolous and boisterous, occupying the air like a flock of birds and inspired by modern dance choreography".

Producing the sculpture takes more than a year. It involves firstly creating an armature from which to make the figures in a non-drying sculpting material. Moulds are then taken of the figures to enable bronze casting at the foundry. Finally the steel grid will be fabricated and the sculpture assembled in its final form.

The artist has undertaken some preparatory work but the sculpture cannot be fully commissioned until the funding is secured. You will be able to follow the process of creating Flight of the Langoustine by watching videos of the work as it progresses. Click below to see the preparatory stage - A Sculpture in Bronze Begins.