Alan Wright’s 2007 St Leonards Carnival head-piece is currently displayed in Hastings Arts Forum window

St Leonards Festival head-piece at Hastings Arts Forum

Local stained glass artist Alan Wright has recently installed this beautiful Marine Court head-piece in the window of Hastings Arts Forum on Marina in St Leonards. The carnival mask/head-piece was made for St Leonards Festival carnival parade in 2007 – for the first carnival parade which was in the second year of St Leonards Festival. Below, Alan tells us more about the head-piece.

I wanted to create something representing St Leonards – so I chose the iconic Marine Court. As a stained glass artist I also enjoyed playing with colour. The head-piece is made from cardboard, wire, crepe paper, masking tape, and paint.

Dr. Mandy Curtis of 18 Hours, Events and Education, says that;

“Weekly workshops were delivered in partnership with Radiator Arts and held in the offices of the Gensing and St Leonards Community Forum in Silchester Road. The carnival parade was (and has been again since 2017) a mixture of local community groups, schools, local drummers, and some professional carnival arts organisations.

The headline act on the main stage that year was ASWAD.

St Leonards Festival 2020 has been postponed and we look forward to the Festival taking place again on Saturday 10 July 2021. We are keen for local schools, community members, businesses, arts groups to participate by making themed wagons/carts to push along the seafront and into Warrior Square.”

We look forward to Festival 2021!

You can see examples of Alan Wright’s original stained glass designs and restoration work on his website.

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