This scale model was created using a 3D printer and has been sprayed with a bronze finish to give Amy and the team some ideas of how it might look. At this stage, nothing is ‘fixed’ as she experiments with different trim angles and wave patterns – and materials. In parallel, she is busy sketching ideas for carvings and figures, whilst working alongside the boatbuilders and structural engineers who are concentrating on some of the practical aspects – how to fit it all together and make it last a century or two! The finished article will stand 4 metres tall and have a ground footprint of 25 square metres. We can’t think of many ‘maritime’ sculptures on this scale – can you?
The structure will incorporate seating and a number of carvings providing additional drama and information. The location, at a natural meeting point inside the dockyard gate, provides extensive opportunities for public interaction.
Here is the bare model, created using a 3D printer, gives Amy and the team some ideas about the opportunities for carvings on the back and the pitch and trim of the vessel. These could be the first waves in the world with built-in seats! It also helps the design team to work out how best to construct the various elements, support them – and install them at the site.
The model from head-on. It will stand 4m high – so should be quite imposing!Robert Hichens in his seagoing overalls – and an artist’s sketch of how he might look. The historical research into the various components of the sculpture is a fascinating element of the design process.Research materials to inform some of the carvings – these images come from the boats of the British Miliary Powerboat Collection as well as archive material from the Night Hunters Museum, the Imperial War Museum and the Trust’s own archive material.The model, seen from the starboard side. Plastillin model of the WRNS signaller
Around the monument and carved into it will be scenes from operations, design drawings of the different vessels and tributes to groups of men and women who made such a huge contribution. One idea is a series of plaques set into the paving stones. Each one will lead the visitor to an information display that helps to bring the whole thing to life
Our Target
To deliver this monument, we need £550,ooo by Nov 2026. So far, we have raised £320,156
