{"id":308723,"date":"2025-08-01T08:02:16","date_gmt":"2025-08-01T08:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/308723\/"},"modified":"2025-08-01T08:02:16","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T08:02:16","slug":"york-man-wows-beachgoers-with-his-sand-sculptures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/308723\/","title":{"rendered":"York man wows beachgoers with his sand sculptures"},"content":{"rendered":"

A York man who\u2019s built countless sand sculptures spends hours each week creating his marvellous designs. <\/p>\n

Part-time church minister Mark Lewis discovered his love for the craft when he used to take his two sons, now 27 and 25, to build sandcastles at the beach. <\/p>\n

From mermaid tails and lions to Crocs and castles, what began as a bit of fun has now turned into \u201cquite a serious hobby.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Photographs: Supplied<\/p>\n

Speaking to YorkMix<\/strong>, Mark said, \u201cWe just used to do what everybody else does on the beach, dig big holes and build castles. In around 2010 when the boys were about 10 and 12 years old, we started to get a bit more ambitious.\u201d<\/p>\n

They began replicating things they were interested in at the time, such ad Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, and created sand versions of R2-D2 and Jabba the Hutt. <\/p>\n

Mark never considered himself to have much artistic ability, and the only formal training he had was an Art O Level from school. <\/p>\n

But, practice made perfect, and with each sculpture he improved. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou learn by trial and error, and the more you learn techniques the more you can push the envelope, gradually you pick up enough skills to start making things look much better,\u201d Mark said. <\/p>\n

For his 50th birthday, his sister gifted him a sand sculpting workshop at Sand in Your Eye in West Yorkshire, where he has since collaborated on several projects.<\/p>\n

Viral Crocs<\/p>\n

In May this year, Mark had travelled to Weymouth, where he crafted a different sculpture on the beach each day, including a bucket and spade, a fish, and a mega-sized pair of Crocs. <\/p>\n

According to Mark, Weymouth has ideal sand for sculpting thanks to it\u2019s fine texture, and the town has a rich history of sand and. <\/p>\n

Whilst on holiday, he sculpted an oversized pair of Crocs, though he recalled his family jokingly telling him that they, \u201cweren\u2019t his best work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Despite this, after packing up for the day and leaving his sculpture behind, one impressed lady saw the Crocs, took a photo, and posted it to a local Weymouth Facebook group. <\/p>\n

To Mark\u2019s surprise, the post received thousands of views, and his Instagram and Facebook pages received a surge of interaction. <\/p>\n

A day later, tourist attraction Sandworld reached out and invited him to showcase his talents in their giant sandpit. <\/p>\n

\u201cFor them to ask somebody like me, an amateur, and given the opportunity to do something at a professional sculpture park, I wasn\u2019t going to turn that down. I went along and had a fantastic day,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Mark scultped a giant mermaid tail, big enough for people to pose behind, and it still stands at the park to this day. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe park has left it for people to take photos with. So as far as I know it\u2019s still going, which is great.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A way to unwind<\/p>\n

Mark especially enjoys the creative process behind his sculptures and sees the activity as a way to unwind and switch off. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou get into the zone and you\u2019re concentrating so much on what you\u2019re doing, you become unaware of everything else. You switch off from all the other responsibilities you\u2019ve got, and you\u2019re just able to enjoy being present in the moment and doing something creative.\u201d<\/p>\n

He typically creates one sculpture a week, more during the summer time, with regular trips to Scarborough or using his large sandpit at home. <\/p>\n

Depending on the size and detail of sculptures, they can take anywhere from two to eight hours. Despite the effort, Mark doesn\u2019t mind leaving them behind. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a temporary medium, it\u2019s going to either get knocked over or washed away. So you\u2019ve either got to destroy it yourself or leave it with the expectation that somebody else will. So I genuinely don\u2019t mind, I enjoy the process of creating it, and as long as I\u2019ve got some photos at the end, that\u2019s great.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also enjoys chatting with beachgoers who stop to admire his work, and hopes to inspire others along the way. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe only thing is, I\u2019ve often had parents getting a bit upset with me because they think I\u2019m setting the bar too high. Their children now expect them to be able to walk away and replicate what I just made!\u201d Mark joked. <\/p>\n

To see more of Mark\u2019s creations, follow his Instagram page here. <\/p>\n

More photos below. <\/strong><\/p>\n

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