Portishead : Full Fathom Five

Image: © Lewis Clarke Taken: 2 Jun 2020

One of the largest sculptures recently installed in the United Kingdom, Michael Dan Archer’s seafarers’ sculpture ‘Full Fathom Five’ consists of a forest of 108 granite columns running across a large earthwork overlooking the Bristol Channel. The columns vary in height from 1 to 3 metres and are arranged in serpentine aisles leading to the crest of the mound. Here a stone is laid where one can sit and contemplate the sea, creating a space for memories and remembrance. From land or water, the view reveals that the columns form the profile of a wave. The sculpture has been designed to evoke the atmosphere of the sea and to relate to historical and contemporary seafaring. It also reflects Archer’s preoccupation with the enigmatic architectural forms of ancient cultures. Text is carved on many of the columns, commemorating seafarers and Portishead’s specific links with the sea. Many of the ideas were sourced during a period of community consultation on the work, in partnership with the Royal British Legion and the Gordano Historical Society. Also inscribed are lines from a specially written poem paralleling man’s inter-dependence with the sea and the journey through life.

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