About the Supergraphics Festival
In June 2024, Lewes District Council funded a transformative series of murals and events across Newhaven Town, turning blank walls and neglected streets into vibrant spaces of colour and creativity during a month-long celebration of the visual arts.
At the centre of the festival was a series of large-scale public artworks created by 13 specially commissioned artists including—Amber Elise, Annie Frost Nicholson, Anthony Burrill, Bec Dennison, Dave Bain, Lee Eelus, Ellie Fryer, Gary Stranger, Paris 68 Redux, Paul Farrell, See Creatures, Supermundane, and Survival Techniques—whose diverse murals, reflecting the community, landscape, nature, and history of Newhaven, are permanently displayed throughout the town.
In addition to the public mural programme, a colourful series of ‘paste-up’ artworks, created by local, regional, and national artists, was exhibited across the town and at Charleston in Lewes; these paste-ups, rooted in the global street art movement, traditionally allowed artists to communicate their message to a wide audience through unsanctioned public spaces.
The murals are all still in place, so enjoy the trail when you visit the town. You can download the map via the link below.
The Sites
Below is a brief piece about each of our murals the artists who created them
The Sidings
Discover the first mural just a few short steps away from Newhaven Town train station, within The Sidings.
This giant, floor based typographic artwork was painted by Gary Stranger within the community courtyard.
Gary Stranger is an artist who lives and works in Brighton, always using typography but pushing it to the point of abstraction.
Location: The Sidings, Railway Approach, BN9 0DF
This work is not open to the public until April 2025
Chapel Street
See Creatures, AKA Dan Walters, came back to gift the town one extra little easter egg, after doing his brilliant, and much loved mural on the Lower Place underpass.
Location: 16 Chapel Street, Newhaven BN9 9PN
Chapel Street
Underpass
Rob Lowe AKA Supermundane spent a number of days looking around the town, visiting Newhaven Museum and Historical Society, and speaking with the Look Again team.
The result – a truly transformative, tiled artwork which celebrates the port, industry, and geography of the town.
Location: 16 Chapel Street, Newhaven BN9 9PN
Seahaven Swim & Fitness
Brighton based Lee Eelus has created a bold and colourful design to greet all who use and work out at the cherished Seahaven Swim and Fitness.
Eelus’ work expresses the movement and joy of life by the sea, with a splash of his trademark surrealism.
Location: 16 Chapel Street, Newhaven BN9 9PN
Photo Credit: Lee Eelus
Ellie Fryer, who was born in nearby Eastbourne has installed a beautiful and loosely narrative work in the last of our three Chapel Street locations.
We specifically chose Ellie for the way in which she weaves mythology and folklore through graphics which contain so many wonderful and intricate details.
Take time to discover these for yourself and be fascinated by its nautical, nocturnal other-worldliness.
Location: 16 Chapel Street, Newhaven BN9 9PN
Seahaven Swim & Fitness Underpass
Newhaven Square: Portside Vets
Sussex-based typographic artist Naomi Edmondson, AKA Survival Techniques, created a huge, bold statement piece in the town square. This piece greets visitors with positive vibes as they follow our trail across the town.
Location: 11 Newhaven Square, Newhaven BN9 9QS
Marshall Lane
Brighton based Amber Elise is a multifaceted creative force, weaving her narratives through the visual arts as a painter, illustrator, and muralist.
With a mesmerising blend of shapes and patterns, she skillfully translates her life experiences into vibrant formations that resonate deeply with viewers. Her intuitive approach to creativity shines through her work, which spans canvases, collages, and large-scale murals.
Location: Marshall Lane, Newhaven BN9 9RB
Note: Billboard Artwork is not by Amber Elise.
Library Stairwell
Many Hands were the contracted installers for a few of our murals in the festival, working with artists to convey their vision.
As well as painting murals commercially, they are also practicing fine artists, and after they had worked on murals in the town, they offered to gift the town a mural as a thank you, and then one Wednesday afternoon this beautiful artwork appeared, celebrating the port and our connection with France!
Location: High Street, Newhaven BN9 9PD
A tricky wall to find an artwork for, but we just knew it would be a perfect gateway between our murals, so had to utilise it.
Artist Paul Farrell has recently been working on ultra minimalist hand gesture artworks, this one is a giant symbol for ‘Okay’, an internationally recognised symbol used by divers, which is a gentle nod to our marine history and industries!
Location: 30 High Street, Newhaven BN9 9PD
High Street
Clock Wall
St Luke’s Lane
Internationally-renowned artist Anthony Burrill is known for his deceptively simple and super positive artworks. Using type and graphic devices he has created artworks large and small across the globe, always bringing a zen like wisdom to the work.
This mural in St Luke’s Lane is a whopping 40 metres wide by 8 metres tall, and greets everyone who arrives in town by bus or on foot from the north of town.
Location: 14 High Street, Newhaven BN9 9PE
Photo credit: Many Hands
Lower Place
Car Park
Hidden away behind the overgrowth at the foot of the Lower Place car park, is another easter egg, gifted to us by one of our main artists in the festival.
Gary Stranger is an artist who lives and works in Brighton, always using typography but pushing it to the point of abstraction.
Location: Lower Place, Newhaven BN9 9FA
Lower Place Underpass
Brighton based artist Dan Walters, AKA See Creatures, was one of the first artists we approached. Within weeks of commissioning him, he had come back with designs for this all-encompassing and magical work that wraps the outside, the walls and ceiling of the underpass below North Way, leading to Lower Place.
This beautiful artwork references the flora and fauna you will find along the Ouse as it makes its way through the Downs and to the Channel.
Location: Lower Place, Newhaven BN9 9FA
Ship Street
The ‘cat wall’ in Newhaven was started by outsider artist Danny McEvoy, who transformed his garden wall into what has become a relatively secretive, though much-treasured, feline feature.
Look Again has augmented this existing piece of ‘folk art’ with an accompanying mural by artist Bec Dennison. AKA Bullet On A String.
Bec has transformed the wall of Danny’s house into an ode to resident cat Stripes. To see is to believe.
Location: 38 Elphick Road, Newhaven BN9 9SY
Photo Credit: Johnnie Bassett
The Jolly Boatman
The owners have been renovating the Jolly Boatman over the last few years, rescuing this well-loved community pub from auction and the risk of extinction.
They worked closely with artist Dave Bain to create an artwork that celebrates many local heroes. Wrapping around the entire building this joyous figurative work is comprised of stylised characters and bright colours.
Location: 133 Lewes Road, Newhaven BN9 9SJ
