EASTBOURNE.- Towner Eastbourne, with support from the South Downs National Park Authority (SDNPA) and East Sussex County Council Public Health and in collaboration with Eastbourne Downland Group and Eastbourne Borough Council, has commissioned artists Alinah Azadeh and Will Spankie to create four bespoke oak benches to be situated at compass points around the Warren Hill Dew Pond near Eastbourne. The benches have been designed, constructed and carved by sculptor Will Spankie, with landscape-inspired inscriptions written by Sussex-based artist and writer Alinah Azadeh, who was the first Writer in Residence for Seven Sisters and the Sussex Heritage Coast 2020-24.

The Warren Hill Dew Pond benches will provide a downland location for gathering, as well as rest and reflection, for people of all ages and abilities, allowing appreciation of the surrounding landscape and stunning views across Eastbourne and Pevensey Bay to the East and Beachy Head, the Seven Sisters and the sea towards the South.

As well as offering breath-taking views and a variety of habitats and ecologies to explore and learn about, there is significant history and landscape archaeology of interest around the area of the dew pond, with evidence of human activity dating back to the Stone Age.

Located immediately next to a nature-rich Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), where a number of footpaths, including the South Downs Way, converge, Warren Hill Dew Pond is already a popular place with local residents, walkers and cyclists. It is hoped that the new benches, on a site easily accessible by foot, bike or mobility vehicle, will encourage even more visitors to enjoy the area and its breathtaking views, and feel the enormous wellbeing benefits that access to the landscape can offer.

Sara Cooper, Head of Collections & Exhibitions at Towner Eastbourne said ‘These beautiful Sussex Oak benches have given us a wonderful opportunity to work with valued partners on a project which encompasses three things that we are passionate about at Towner: providing access to quality, thought-provoking art, promoting the local landscape and improving physical and mental health and wellbeing for our community through art and culture.

It’s been fantastic working collaboratively with artists Alinah Azadeh and Will Spankie to bring the project to fruition. We’ve been fascinated to learn more about the positive impact that being in nature has on mental and physical health, and are pleased to contribute to providing a site where people can gather, exercise or just sit and enjoy views of this amazing landscape; a critical factor in helping to enhance mood and reduce stress.’

The 8ft (2.5m) long benches were made by Will Spankie at his workshop near Ditchling using green oak sourced from the Balcombe Estate sawmill in West Sussex. Each bench has been inscribed with a text written by Alinah Azadeh - entitled ‘To the North’, ‘To the South’, ‘To the East’ and ‘To the West’; the four reflective texts referencing the views from each of the benches.

Towner Eastbourne’s second site Black Robin Farm is located only 15 minutes’ walk from the dew pond. When it opens to the public the new site will attract artists and creatives, schools and educational groups, landscape specialists and ecologists. The dew pond area will provide both a meeting point and a backdrop for nature-based and landscape activity for all of these groups.

Close to Beachy Head and the Seven Sisters the site is uniquely and safely placed to serve as a site of reflection, remembrance and communal gathering for those who have lost loved ones to suicide at the nearby cliffs. The benches form part of an initiative by those involved in suicide prevention to reframe the area with more positive associations, providing an alternative site for reflection away from the cliffs themselves.

The benches will be officially unveiled at a launch event at 11.30am on Thursday 1 May, May Day. The celebratory event will be attended by the commissioning teams, the artists, local dignitaries and stakeholders as well as school groups and Eastbourne residents.

Antonia Lucas, co-founder of the Eastbourne Downland Group said: ‘We’re so looking forward to unveiling the new benches and welcoming the community to gather on the Downs to enjoy this beautiful location at this symbolic time of year. Warren Hill is a lovely safe, accessible location for rest and reflection, a picnic or even to bring a sketchbook. It is the perfect place to feel closer to the heritage of the landscape that has shaped our town over thousands of years. We are delighted by the partnership with Towner in the realisation of these new benches, the idea for which came from the residents of Eastbourne who so enjoyed discovering the Downs during our initiatives including the Eastbourne Walking Festival and Beat the Street.’