Head of Art and creative team launch giant ‘Cuttle Sticks’ sculpture as part of creative campaign for cleaner seas
11 June 2026
Last week Falmouth’s Head of Art, Duncan Cameron, launched the second instalment of his @beachbeasties collaborative creative campaign, ‘Cuttle Sticks’.
Having been crafted over the last few months by Duncan himself alongside Falmouth staff, students and volunteers from the local community, the result is a visually impressive 20-foot sculpture of a cuttlefish made from willow. The “beautiful, intelligent and colour-changing masters of camouflage” were chosen as this year’s “beach beastie” to draw attention to the part cuttlefish play in Cornwall’s marine ecosystem, despite being frequently overlooked.
The sculpture was launched last week as part of Falmouth’s celebration for World Ocean Day. Speaking about the event, Duncan shared: “It was a fantastic day on Gyllyngvase Beach. As part of Falmouth’s Festival for the Ocean, we paraded the wicker sculpture ‘Cuttle Sticks’, to celebrate our local marine creatures and habitats.
“Along with wonderful help from so many volunteers, we paraded joyously for sea life up and down the shoreline. Lots of people and wonderful communities came together to sing, wear plankton hats, make drawings and push the willow creature puppets. Seeing science and art come together for nature and for more protected and cleaner seas was all just wonderful.”
The formation of ‘Cuttle Sticks’ came together after Duncan hosted a series of public workshops, bringing together Falmouth students and working alongside the Falmouth Technical Facilities team to drill, cut and weave wicker, bringing Duncan’s creative vision to life.
“When fun, exciting and creative things happen it creates a sort of ‘enthusiasm gravity’ and people come together and want to get involved,” Duncan shared. “It’s that shared feeling that we can make things, do something, contribute and campaign for nature. The energy of collective working to a deadline brings pace and drive. Without the community of people around a project like this, it simply wouldn’t have happened.”
The ‘Cuttle Sticks’ project follows last year’s ‘Basket Shark’, a creation that was paraded once again during last month’s Surfers Against Sewage Paddle Out event, as part of an artistic display encouraging water companies to end sewage pollution.
“It’s all about making people’s voices heard while creatively protesting on pollution in a way that is exciting and fun,” Duncan said when asked about the projects. “It’s all about creative agency and a hope for change.”
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