Thousands head to the seafront for Art on the Prom festival

Art on the Prom returned to Felixstowe this weekend with thousands of people descending on the seafront.

The annual open-air art festival saw the Felixstowe Promenade transformed into an open-air gallery by artists from across Suffolk; with over 100 artists' work stretching from the Pier to the Spa Gardens.

It was the 16th year that the festival had been held, and over that time it has become one of the region's biggest outdoor art festivals.

The artists behind the pieces were also present, offering potential buyers an insight into how the works were created.

This year's Art on the Prom also carried an environmental message about the dangers of single use plastic.

Willow artist Tracy Barritt-Brown created a large plastic octopus sculpture made of buoys, nets, fishing wire and other plastics which were collected locally.

As well as this Ms Barritt-Brown also led a project with local primary schools - including Causton Junior School, Langer Primary School and Colneis Junior School - where pupils were encouraged to collect single-use plastics.

All the waste was then pooled and transformed into an underwater world of corals, creatures and sea plants.

Also on display was a travelling exhibition designed by Eastern Angles theatre company called Food Wars: The Battle on the Home Front, which explored the relationship between conflict and food.

Organiser Nichola Adams, who has taken on the festival for the first time this year said: "The atmosphere appears to be really upbeat. Everyone is smiling. We have had lots of visitors from outside Felixstowe; from Bury, Cambridge and Essex.

"It's pleasing that people put this on their calenders to come to, plus it's great exposure for all the artists we have."

Miss Adams said she hoped to build on the legacy that the event's previous organisers had created and said that planning was already underway for next year's festival.

"We have got really good supporters and sponsors like Coes and the Orwell Hotel as well as the volunteers and the community in Felixstowe."