Meet the chef balancing rocks on a Norfolk beach during lockdown
James Campbell balancing rocks on Sheringham beach. Pictures: David Bale - Credit: Archant
And the tide rushes in .....and washes my sculptures away.
James Campbell balances rocks on the lifeguard beach in Sheringham. Pictures: Robert Walkley - Credit: Archant
James Campbell has been spending lockdown balancing rocks on Sheringham lifeguard beach.
But, however impressive his creations are, they generally only last until the tide comes in and washes them away.
His work has created a lot of interest on social media with beach walkers taking photographs and posting them online.
The 30-year-old chef started balancing rocks on the beach about eight years ago.
James Campbell balances rocks on the lifeguard beach in Sheringham. Pictures: Robert Walkley - Credit: Archant
He said: “I started doing it on my split shifts when I worked at the old Burlington Hotel in Sheringham. Whenever I had spare time between shifts, I would go down there.
“I find it quite relaxing. I like how these rocks stand and I like taking people away from their daily lives. When people walk on the beach they are so wrapped up in other things.
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“I like to see people’s reactions.
“But then the rocks are washed away by high tides, but that’s part of the reason I like it. The people who appreciate it are those that are there just on that day.
James Campbell has been balancing rocks on Sheringham beach. Picture: supplied by James Campbell - Credit: Archant
“I didn’t realise they were so popular until a friend’s mum told me she saw the pictures on the internet, and I said I was the lad who did them.”
He said the rocks were part of sea defence boulders that had broken off.
He added: “Norfolk flint is too slippery, but this granite has crystal formations, and I can balance them quite easily. When you stand them up it’s like putting Lego bricks together.
“No-one has told me not to do it, but it’s a public beach and I don’t stack them too high. Some of the rocks can be really heavy.
James Campbell balancing rocks on Sheringham beach. Pictures: David Bale - Credit: Archant
“I go down to the beach about once a week. What else have I got to do during lockdown?”
Mr Campbell, who lives in nearby Beeston Regis, does rock climbing and bouldering in his spare time, and added: “It’s like grip training when I’m collecting rocks. I think I’ve got an artistic flair and I used to be a circus performer.
“I’m honestly shocked to see how many people enjoy my work.”
James Campbell keeps balancing rocks on the lifeguard beach in Sheringham. Pictures: Robert Walkley - Credit: Archant
James Campbell balances rocks on Sheringham beach. Pictures: Robert Walkley - Credit: Archant
The rocks on the lifeguard beach in Sheringham. Pictures: Robert Walkley - Credit: Archant
James Campbell balancing rocks on Sheringham beach. Pictures: David Bale - Credit: Archant
