Outdoor Easter Art Trail mysteriously appears across Leigh-on-Sea

April 17, 2017 by Michael Shelley

Thousands of people discovered pieces of art Easter art had popped up on lamp posts, drainpipes, zebra crossings, gates and street furniture across the Leigh Road, Broadway, Elm Road and Rectory Grove, Leigh-on-Sea this past Holy Week.

Shoppers, day trippers and people on nights out over the Easter holiday were confronted by 14 pieces of framed art work exploring the themes of betrayal, denial, death, life and hope contained in the Easter story.

The art trail which ran from 10th – 17th April was called #EASTERICONS and was brought to Leigh-on-Sea by Icons-on-Sea with the help of Leigh Road Baptist Church. Icons-on-Sea, a creative collective are usually found creating in Southend High Street and Seafront – but this installation is the first in another part of the borough.

Icons-on-Sea artist, David Elcock said “Our aim is to engage people with Christianity through a variety of media, including installation art and performance. Our work is sometimes provocative, sometimes challenging, sometimes witty, and we hope, always thought-provoking.”

The trail also took place at a new micro website set up for the trail www.icons-on-sea.org.uk and 7,000 people are estimated to have engaged online. The site also provided and interactive trail map for peoples smart phone or tablet to help them find all 14 pieces.

Linda King walked the trail with her daughter after discovering it online. Linda commented on Facebook “I walked the trail yesterday and thoroughly recommend this as a time to reflect on these contemporary and thought-provoking images of the last days of Christ.”

Those who discovered the pieces of art were also encouraged to share selfies with the icons and comment on the hashtags #ICONSONSEA and #EasterIcons