Murals

31 Philippa Threfall, Evolution of life at Sea, 1963

Status: Unlisted
Condition: Condition unknown
Type: Tiles
Owners: Unknown
Location: Loftus County Modern School, Loftus, Cleveland

The rectangular 19ft 6in by 9ft mural representing aquatic life is the work of a 23 year old artist from London, Philippa Threfall. Loftus County Council commissioned an artwork to decorate the new school and Threfall was asked by the director of the school to engage the children to help with its construction – an early example of the kind of community art project which is so popular today. Another stipulation was that the mural should be constructed entirely of local minerals. The schoolchildren then collected fossils and stones from a nearby beach for Threfall to work with. The mural is made up of 18 sections which together depict life in the sea.

The school was demolished in 2009 but the mural was saved and relocated to Doorstep Green Park in Skinningrove in November 2009.