Somerset House exhibitions shows the beauty in the Thames super-sewer

An artist wants Londoners to see the beauty in the Thames super-sewer.

Eloise Hawser of Somerset House Studios explores the relationship between London and its hidden network of water in exhibition By The Deep, By The Mark. It ranges from Sir Joseph Bazalgette’s Victorian sewer system to the new £4.2 billion Thames Tideway tunnel scheme, which is designed to stop 39 million tonnes of raw sewage spilling into the river each year by 2024.

It features sculptures, audiovisual displays, medical hardware, archival material and engineers’ models.

One graphic shows wildlife that could return to the river after the project is completed — such as short-snouted seahorses, Chinese mitten crabs and mute swans. Hawser, 32, who spent two years on research and worked with Tideway engineers, admitted it was “a leap” to make sewage work into art.

“Walking down the street you think, ‘Argh, they are digging a sewer,’ but when you meet the engineers you find how inspiring it is. These people are all so passionate. We are working towards almost a wildlife reserve on the Thames.”

The exhibition is free and runs until April 22 at Somerset House.