A LINE IN THE SAND: Meet the animal rights activist drawing provocative sand art
Fred Brown, who describes himself as an animal rights activist and amateur beach artist, has received hundreds of likes and well-wishes online for his beautiful and provocative sand art.
KARLEIGH FRASER: A Yorkshire man has gained fame in the community after visitors to the region’s beaches have shared photographs of his provocative and well-crafted drawings online. Fred Brown, who describes himself as an animal rights activist and amateur beach artist, has received hundreds of likes and well-wishes online for his beautiful and provocative sand art. The York local has travelled to beaches across the region, including Saltburn Beach, to draw anything and everything from seals, octopus’ legs and charitable messages.
Fred’s most recent piece at Saltburn beach in Redcar. Following overwhelming praise on social media, Fred told The Northern Echo that beach art was something he just “stumbled” into. He said: “As an animal rights activist I used to chalk pro-vegan messages on the ground in York. The designs I chalked were quite simple as I’m no artist, but I did like to make them as big as possible in order to make them hard to miss. “I’d got the bug for drawing large pieces and tried to think of other ways to present messages that couldn’t be missed…
As well as his more traditional work, Fred likes to dabble in what he called “overtly contentious” pieces that can range from pro-vegan rhetoric to political messages, as he admits the response can mostly be positive. Fred told the Echo: “The response very much depends on the piece. Most of the time I like to draw pretty pictures with simple messages to try and provoke thought and discussion which are received well, and for the most part appreciated. Other times I draw more overtly contentious pieces, which provoke a more love/hate response. On the beach people ignore me for the most part, which is fine by me as I’m not overly fond of chatting…
Locals can often find Fred’s artwork on beaches with vantage points, as the pieces are captured by drone to be sold as prints and photos. SOURCE…
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