Swansea’s permanent Covid memorial is finished, and it is now open to anyone who needs a quiet seat by the sea.
The steel and glass artwork near the Slip Bridge on the promenade was unveiled at a community ceremony overlooking the bay.
Among the guests were groups representing people who lost their lives, alongside the emergency services, voluntary groups and the council teams that changed how they worked to help run the city’s response.
Council leader Cllr Rob Stewart unveiled it with Cllr Elliott King, the cabinet member for culture, and the two artists behind it, Angharad Pearce Jones and Catrin Jones.
“It was a privilege to unveil a memorial which will hold different meanings and memories for so many people,” Cllr Stewart said. “Today was an opportunity to remember those who lost their lives and to stand alongside their families and friends.”
Three glass circles inspired by the peacock butterfly
The memorial combines sculpted steel with three circles of coloured glass inspired by the native peacock butterfly.
The council says its design reflects separation and loss, but also endurance, transformation, community spirit and hope.
It is ringed with seating, footpaths, naturalistic planting and wildflowers, so people can sit alone or together. The council put the cost at £130,000 when the plans were first revealed in March.
The artists said people who took part in the consultation kept asking for the same thing: “a place of calm within a natural setting”.
“The Memorial itself brings together the strength and resilience of steel, and the healing and spiritual energy of light and colour through glass,” they said.
“Covid touched every part of Swansea”
“Covid touched every part of Swansea and its impact continues to be felt by families and communities across the city,” Cllr Stewart said.
“For many of us, one of the most enduring memories of what happened was how so many people came together to do so much, so willingly for the people around them.”
Lord Mayor Cllr Penny Matthews said the setting “now belongs to the whole community”. “I hope it will provide comfort and a peaceful place to pause, reflect and remember,” she said.
Cllr King said the memorial also recognised the council teams “which changed the way they worked overnight” to support vulnerable people and keep essential services running. “Let’s look after and cherish it,” he added.
Where to find Swansea’s Covid memorial
It stands on the grassed area between the trees near the Slip Bridge, where work began at the start of the month.
It joins the Covid memorials already created at Morriston and Singleton hospitals by Swansea Bay University Health Board.
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