Where does the sea really stop? Meet Intertidal

Four ordinary-looking Ford Fiestas have appeared across Plymouth. But look through the windows and something unexpected is happening.

Intertidal, a new artwork by internationally recognised installation artist David Cotterrell, brings the changing rhythm of Plymouth Sound National Marine Park into the city in a completely new way.

The four cars have been radically re-engineered as tidal instruments. Using tidal information, digital technology and engineering, the water visible inside them rises and falls in response to Plymouth’s changing tide.

The result is a simple but intriguing invitation: stop, look again and think about where the sea really ends.

Bringing the tide into the city

Plymouth is shaped by the sea. It influences our landscape, wildlife, heritage and culture, as well as the lives of the people and communities who have grown up around Plymouth Sound.

But when we’re going about our everyday lives, it’s surprisingly easy not to notice it.

Intertidal takes one of the most familiar objects in our streets and makes it behave according to the rhythm of the water around us.

Artist David Cotterrell explains:

“We live alongside the tide, but it’s remarkably easy to stop noticing it. I wanted to take that familiar rhythm and place it somewhere it doesn’t belong – inside an object we barely give a second glance. There’s something wonderfully strange about encountering an ordinary car and realising that it is quietly responding to the sea. My hope is that moment of surprise makes people pause, look again and perhaps notice the connections between Plymouth and the water that’s all around us.”

Find Intertidal

The four cars have begun their journey at:

Plymouth Hoe Foreshore
Mount Batten
The Box, Tavistock Place
Mount Edgcumbe, near the ferry landing

They won’t stay there.

Throughout September and October, the cars will move to new locations, taking the rhythm of the tide into different communities and unexpected parts of Plymouth.

Find one. Look at the water level. Then come back at another point in the tide and see what’s changed.

From curiosity to connection

Intertidal is part of Sea for Yourself, a cultural programme designed to create new ways for people to connect and reconnect with Plymouth Sound National Marine Park.

Councillor Tudor Evans OBE, Leader of Plymouth City Council, said:

“Intertidal is a brilliant example of Plymouth’s creativity and innovation, taking something as familiar as the tide and presenting it in a completely unexpected way. As home to the UK’s first National Marine Park, we are finding new ways to connect people with Plymouth Sound and the extraordinary environment on our doorstep. By bringing art into everyday spaces across the city, this project will spark curiosity, conversation and a deeper connection with the sea that shapes our identity.”

And finding a car is only the beginning.