Using Beach Shades As Art

Art is not often thought by many as being functional. When most think of artistic things, they often think of paintings, sculptures and statues. While most are beautiful, they can also be quite costly. Some even think of classic cars as artistic. And while they have a function, they are rarely reasonably priced. The last thing people think of as art is umbrellas, such are those used at beaches, pools and on patios. Yet they are very functional. Having an artistic item that also serves as protection from the sun has been termed "shade sculpture".

Having an artistic shape is one way to protect from the suns rays. While some would say that existing tents, umbrellas and pagodas have a certain level of artistic satisfaction already, others would disagree. And rightly so. While most umbrellas and tents do have a certain flow to them, on the whole, they have always been designed in one fashion: as some type of dome or overhanging edifice to deflect the sun away. Beautiful and functional structures can now be had by using artistic concepts.

While the concepts to apply artistic forms to umbrellas and tents may have been around for decades, or even centuries in some areas, only now has the technology gotten to the point where these structures can be built. Superior strength aluminum and lightweight materials have enabled artisans to not only design truly artistic pieces of sculpture, but have allowed them to be created and built. This allows everyone the chance to enjoy the beauty while being protected from a high grade umbrella or sun shade. With these new materials, the flights of fancy that artists have envisioned can now be put into engineering specs and fabricated, bringing those flights of fancy into beautiful reality.

No longer does function have to ultimately dictate form. "Shade sculptures" can now be a reality for those who want sun protection combined with an artistic flair.


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Visiting the beach and ocean is a favorite vacation for Johney Maron. To recreate that feeling, he uses a beach shade as well as patio umbrellas and sun beds in his backyard. Check out TUUCI to find ways of creating your own oasis.