In September 2009, a striking contemporary landmark emerged in St John's Square just off Church Street, transforming the pedestrianised heart of Blackpool into an open-air art gallery. Formally titled The Wave, this 10.5-metre-tall public art installation was created by renowned sculptor Lucy Glendinning as part of a major town centre regeneration project. Fabricated by engineering firm M-Tec using 17 tonnes of mirror-polished stainless steel, the sculpture curls upward from the pavement in a dramatic double S-shape to mimic a breaking coastal crest. Piercing through the top of this steel swell is a twice-life-size, semi-transparent female figure cast in crystal-clear blue resin, frozen mid-air as she dives elegantly toward the streets below.
Beyond its representation of Blackpool's famous coastal resort identity, the installation cleverly bridges the town's seaside heritage with its historic surroundings. The steel structure is intricately laser-cut and studded with irregular resin inserts whose shapes were directly inspired by the historic stained glass windows of the adjacent St John the Evangelist's Church. At night, intelligent internal LED lighting makes these resin drops glow and shift through a spectrum of vibrant colours, casting an ethereal light across the square. Encircling the base of the massive wave are nine blue resin boulders that serve as public seating, inviting locals and tourists alike to sit, look up, and admire a piece of art that earned the Blackpool Civic Trust Award for Best Public Realm.