Title: Spiral Coppice Arch
Materials: Sweet Chestnut and Steel
Approx. size: 3m x 2.5m x 2.5m
Location: Riverhill Gardens, Kent, UK
Date: 2016
This sculpture was created during the Forum Arts International Sculpture Symposium at Riverhill Gardens and was inspired by their sweet chestnut woodland. The sculpture appears to grow from and return into the ground, and acts like a frame in the landscape that changes as you move around and through it. I find the ancient art of coppicing fascinating and admire its technique and its provision of sustainable timber, so the sculpture is made from locally produced Chestnut coppice wood. Sweet Chestnut is a fast growing species and has a good outdoor durability. Once the steel substructure of the sculpture was erected it was clad with the chestnut round timber, individually shaped, to fit into its location. The best time to see the Spiral Coppice Arch is during the bluebell season which is mid-April and late May. The carpet of intense blue under the opening tree canopy is one of our greatest woodland spectacles