Colourful Eastbourne mural to stay for another three years

Dance Diagonal by Lothar Götz was painted on the outside of the town’s art gallery in 2019 and was originally meant to be in place for a year.

The artwork’s stay was first extended in March 2020 for an additional year but now it’s been announced the piece will remain on the Towner until 2024.

Towner’s director Joe Hill said, “Once the artwork went up, the public of Eastbourne, their response was amazing. Everyone fell in love with it immediately.

“We regularly got people stopping to take pictures, bringing their community groups down to take pictures outside it, there were even car dealers taking pictures outside it.

“It became a real backdrop for photography, even baby-bump pictures and wedding photos still go on to this day. That is a continuing thing so we have been just completely overwhelmed with the response to the artwork.

“Whenever we talked about it coming to an end everybody was just up in arms, they were upset to hear that it might be going.”

The colourful painting was originally put up to celebrate the gallery’s 10th anniversary in its current building but with the Towner’s centenary year coming up in 2023 the gallery had an idea.

Mr Hill said, “We were thinking, wouldn’t it be great if the commission could run between these two celebrations and be part of our centenary celebrations as well?”

The art piece was so successful that it helped the gallery to its busiest ever year when it was first installed.

Mr Götz will be doing a virtual in-conversation event with Mr Hill on February 23 starting at 4pm.

The pair will discuss the artist’s work, including his piece in Eastbourne, and the event is free to attend and open to everyone although a donation to support Towner’s programme would be welcomed.

The Towner has been exhibiting and collecting contemporary art for 98 years and resides in the largest purpose-built art gallery in the South East.

To donate to the Towner’s programme visit, http://bit.ly/3aNfbXI and if you would like to attend the event visit, http://bit.ly/2MKYynE.