The Art of Stones (12 Photos by Jon Foreman)
Content warning: Which one is your favorite?
Have you ever seen a beach look this good? Jon Foreman turns stones into hypnotic patterns that look like they belong in a dream. In 2025, he traveled from Wales to Taiwan to create these 12 masterpieces. Some pieces were made with Layla Parkin, and they are all absolutely stunning. Check out these 12 photos of his land art!
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🌀 1. Revolve — Druidston, Hamlet in Wales
This dark stone spiral pulls your eyes right into the center. It looks like a giant fingerprint left by nature on the sand.
Jon Foreman: Although I love it when a big wave takes the piece in one, Sometimes the gently lapping waves can provide an extra element to a piece. In this case the small crease lines in the sand – a reaction to the stones being there provide an extra essence of motion to a work that already suggests that. I respond to nature, nature responds to me. A conversation, if you like.
☀️ 2. Circuitus Meridiem — Druidston, Hamlet in Wales
This one looks like a glowing stone sun. The white pebbles in the middle pop against the darker stones on the outside. It is the perfect way to welcome the morning.
🌈 3. Sol Colorum — Freshwater West
This is a rainbow made of rocks. The colors shift from orange to blue so perfectly you might think the beach was painted. Nature has the best color palette.
🌗 4. Halved — Lindsway Bay, Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire
This piece looks like a giant pebble split in half. It shows how different colors and textures can fit together in perfect balance. It is like a stone yin and yang.
🍂 5. Lapis Folium — Gann Estuary (Dale), Wales
A 3D leaf made entirely of red stones. It looks like nature forgot a giant autumn leaf on the sand. The detail is simply amazing.
🔘 6. Augere — Druidston, Hamlet in Wales
A huge circle with a bright center. The layers of stones make it look like the art is glowing from the inside. It is hard to believe these are just normal rocks.
🌊 7. Ripple — Qixingtan Beach, Hualien, Taiwan
This looks like a black and white galaxy on the shore. It is as if a drop of water hit the beach and turned into stone. It was created for a festival in Taiwan.
Jon Foreman: As a Ripple, through water undulates and expands, as does the flow of this artwork. Symbolic of the expansion of the festival and the waves it makes, bringing people together from across seas and transcending languages. This piece is also an evolution and expansion on the piece created by myself and Terry in Hualien last year. Spent a few days on this, very slow work, but luckily the sun was behind the clouds this time, so it wasn’t as hot as last time!, we built this piece to last for the festival time so between every large stone there are three small pebbles that act as a tripod for the next stone, even the smallest stacks feature this technique. it was very slow work by comparison to my more floor based work. The overall form is influenced by the ripple effect caused by a droplet in water. I have a fascination with creating flow with such solid objects as stones. I think there’s more to be experimented with for this form.
💥 8. Colos Chaos — Freshwater West
Hundreds of tiny stone towers standing together in a starburst. This collaboration with Layla Parkin looks like a stone explosion that stopped in time. Do not sneeze near this one!
Jon Foreman: It was quite a rush towards the end as the sun was going down, I would have liked to have adjusted some bits even after looking at pictures now, even so I’m still happy with it!
🌙 9. Shell Moon — Sandy Haven Beach, UK
A crescent moon made from hundreds of shells. It is delicate, beautiful, and fits perfectly with the golden sunset light. Truly magical stuff.
🌟 10. Radiance — Freshwater West
A sunburst pattern with a hollow middle. The sharp stone rays look like they are reaching out for the ocean. It is simple but very powerful.
🐚 11. Fossil — Lindsway Bay, Pembrokeshire, UK
This is a massive drawing in the sand. It looks like a giant prehistoric creature left a mark behind. It is huge compared to the person walking nearby!
〰️ 12. Fluidform — Pensarn, Wales
Long rows of white stones that look like frozen waves. The way they ripple across the sand is very calming. It is the perfect way to end this collection.