The Rise Of The East Wall

In October 1940, a string of bombs was dropped on Margate by a German bomber. That same raid hit the cottage directly above the Grotto, destroying the East Wall of the Altar Chamber below.

The East Wall was replaced at the time with a plain, concrete wall, which has since either been left bare or partially covered by Grotto-themed imagery.

Now, after over 200 hours and a huge amount of patience, our very own Michelangelo, artist Paul Hazelton, has completed a stunning, full-scale mural of the original East Wall, in situ in the Altar Chamber, replicating with paint the large section of shell mosaic which was destroyed 85 years ago.

East Wall mural

Details of the mural

Method

The first step was to carefully study the few remaining photos of the original East Wall, taken in the early 20th century, to ensure the finished mural was as accurate to the original as possible.

Paul had planned to map the design onto the wall using reverse transfer - a technique in which a printed image is stuck face down to a surface with glue and then the paper is removed from the back, leaving an ink impression.

"Because the photos of the East Wall were not of sufficient quality, I had intended to reverse transfer using modern photos of the West Wall. As much of the East Wall design mirrored the West Wall, this seemed like a logical approach."

But it soon became apparent that the East Wall mirrored the West Wall in design but not in proportion.

"Although the Altar Chamber first appeared to be perfectly rectangular, I realised that it was more irregular - the East Wall being wider than the West Wall. I therefore decided to abandon the reverse transfer technique and to sketch the design directly onto the wall with chalk instead."

Paul began by painting the mural freehand, starting with the middle, horizontal band of shells, before deciding that he needed to find a more efficient and effective method. This led to the creation of a series of rubber stamps of the various shells in the Grotto, cut into lino and glued to wooden blocks.

Selection of stamps and materials

The process of printing the shells in this way gave a uniformity that would have been almost impossible to achieve had they all been painted freehand. It also dramatically sped up the process.

Not all the shells were printed with stamps though. Oyster shells, for example, are less uniform in shape and have a greater pearlescent quality, so these were applied using thick, broad brushstrokes - a technique which helps to catch the light. Some of the mussel shells were painted in a similar way too, and some shells used a combination of techniques - the sea urchins, for example, were first printed with the stamps and then overpainted with thicker highlights and dark glazes for shadows.

Paul starting work on the upper half of the mural.

When choosing materials, it was important to consider the Grotto's damp conditions and potential for mould growth, so high-quality acrylic paints known to repel damp and mould were used. As Paul worked on the mural 'out of hours', it was also important that the paint was quick drying, to ensure it would be dry each day for opening.

"To begin with, I painted a dark background layer using acrylic paint. I then applied white, water-based printing ink to the shell stamps, as this has a better viscosity than acrylic paint, and pressed them into the darker acrylic paint ground while the surface was still wet, which created greater definition and three-dimensionality than if I had printed them onto a dry surface."

Gradually, however, Paul started to mix the water-based printing ink with white acrylic paint, as the ink alone wasn’t drying quick enough, and eventually stopped using the printing ink altogether, as the acrylic paint on its own seemed to work fine once his technique had been perfected. Transparent, acrylic golden gel was mixed with the acrylic to extend the paint and create texture and translucency.

"Once dry, using acrylic gel and water, I applied thinned-down bronze or brown acrylic colour in translucent glazes to create further three-dimensionality and shadow."

Paul alternated between painting with additional working spotlights and the usual, dimmer lighting conditions of the Grotto. This enabled Paul to see the mural as visitors would typically view it, adjusting the levels of highlight and shadow accordingly. An acrylic-based matt varnish was applied to certain areas to help bind and give extra protection.

Details of the mural

The optical illusion that Paul has created is astonishing and has, for the first time in almost 100 years, enabled us to envisage the Grotto’s Altar Chamber as it was originally intended.

A huge thank you to Paul for his time, energy and talent. The mural will become a special part of the Grotto, enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of visitors for years to come.