The small seaside resort of Bexhill is an unlikely setting for the first and most important modernist building in Britain, but it was the vision of the town’s equally unlikely socialist mayor, the ninth Earl De La Warr, that created the pavilion named after him in 1935. He drew up a brief for the building and established a competition that was won by two giants of the International Style movement Eric Medelsohn and Serge Chermayeff. The result is stunning – a building of beautiful simplicity, lightness and space.

After a long period of restoration, the De La Warr Pavilion reopened as a national centre for contemporary art in October 2005. It also hosts a wide range of events – for example the Big Spin, now in its third year, a free celebration of BMXing, skateboarding and music on 1 September. There is a 1,000 seat auditorium, with studio space for hire, a gallery and good food.