On Sunday evening, October 15, The Goat Ledge restaurant hosted an event which was rather different to other larger events like the Umbrella Festival, Green Man and Beatles Day on the pier. This was a pet project of Malcolm Glover, a local photographer.
Over years he has seen various individual swimmers in the water in all weathers and decided to document some of them, calling it Swimming Through, a Communal film portraying the members from local groups including the Blue Tits, Groin 42 and Chill on the Beach.
The shots are 36-second portraits taken during the seasons. This evening was a series of 30-second video portraits, shot during the Covid winter as the swimmers, in an immediate and self-contained state of emergence, stepped from the sea. Unlike in photographic stills, here each subject’s initial self-consciousness can be seen, in their face or posture, to gradually dissolve.
It was an interesting photographic experiment for Malcolm and the audience enjoyed it even though it was getting a bit chilly as it got late. Some were prepared, having brought warm clothes and blankets. Being a beautiful setting, right on the shingle, The Goat Ledge provided food and drink in their seating area, a very atmospheric environment.
The Goat Ledge, on Lower Promenade across from Warrior Square, St Leonard-on-Sea, TN37 6FA is well worth a special visit when strolling along the beach. It has little huts to sit in if windy with tables actually on the beach and provides coffee, tea, locally caught fish and full seaside menu.
Image Credits: Heidi Foster .