Newlyn artist’s fish-print flags fly over Penzance Prom

Six new flag designs have gone up along Penzance Promenade and through the town centre for the 2026 season, and the colours pop even on a grey day.

They started life as fish. Real ones, caught off Newlyn and printed by hand before they ever became something to fly above the Prom.

A Newlyn and Goldsithney collaboration

The flags come from a collaboration between Newlyn-based artist Stevie McCrindle at Sea Moor Cornwall and the team at Sailflags in Goldsithney.

Stevie’s work is rooted in Gyotaku, the ancient Japanese art of fish printing, which she has given a modern Cornish twist. She works closely with fishermen and uses locally caught fish from Newlyn, the surrounding Cornish waters and the Isles of Scilly. Her artworks explore the beauty of the fish themselves alongside a wider story of heritage, fishing community and sustainability.

The method starts with paint applied directly onto the fish. Stevie then covers her subject with paper to lift a direct impression, or print. Her own interpretation comes through afterwards, in the embellishment, where she works fine lines into the print to show what she sees, feels and knows about the subject through colour, texture and detail.

Nothing goes to waste

Stevie said her practice has grown well beyond fish printing.

“The work has naturally evolved into something much broader than simply fish printing. Everything I create is deeply connected back to Newlyn, its fishing heritage and the concept of ‘continuing the journey’,” she said.

“The fish used for printing are eaten afterwards rather than wasted, with bones, skins and even ash continuing into other creative processes, including Raku pots and goblets in collaboration with a local ceramicist, alongside further collaborations with vineyards and local businesses.

“What interests me most is connecting people back to provenance, place, materials and the sea, whilst celebrating Newlyn’s heritage in a way that feels both respectful and forward-thinking.”

From design to three metres high

Once the designs were finalised, the job passed to Sailflags, who were set the challenge of turning them into 3-metre-high flags strong enough to stand up to the stiff sou’west winds that blow in off the Atlantic.

Sailflags make all their flags and banners from recycled fabric. They are also planting trees in a small woodland near their Goldsithney premises, which has become a haven for local wildlife.

Repairs, and a shot at a second season

Every flag across the town is covered by a season-long rigging contract, so damaged flags can be retrieved and repaired, and the promenade flags can be brought in when the weather turns. That contract has gone to High Maintenance SouthWest for the 2026 season.

Mayor of Penzance, Cllr Andy Law, said the flags signal the arrival of summer.

“I am so excited about the new flags! The appearance of flags on the Prom signals the imminent arrival of Golowan and the Summer,” he said.

“I am particularly pleased, as a proud resident of Newlyn, at the prospect of Stevie McCrindle’s amazing Gyotaku creations flying high above me as I walk from Newlyn into Penzance. I had promised myself one of her Gyotaku creations as a present to myself to celebrate my retirement. I’d better hurry into her shop before they all sell! Congratulations Penzance Council and all the local contractors involved in making this project a reality.”

Penzance Council says it is proud to work with local artists and contractors on the town and promenade flag projects each year.

There is one more thing the council is trying this year. The flag installations have usually lasted a single season because of the weather they face. Extending that lifespan has been a target, and 2026 is the first year the council will find out whether many of the flags can survive a second season. So a good number of last year’s flags will be flying alongside Stevie’s new designs in town and on the Prom this summer.