Invitation open to take part in Luke Jerram’s living artwork

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A public invitation to leave a message for future generations has been issued by Luke Jerram and tree-planting charity Avon Needs Trees (ANT).

The artist, known for his scale replicas of the earth, moon and sun as well as his street pianos and slide down Park Street, is working in collaboration with ANT on the project which will take upwards of 50 years to come to fruition.

The unique living artwork, known as Echo Wood and described as a ‘vast sculptural grove’, will be a 110m diameter spiral-esque shape comprised of avenues of tree species with different coloured blooms.

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It will be a part of the 422 acre Lower Chew Forest site, dubbed the South West’s ‘largest woodland in a generation’ which, as well as 100,000 new trees, will also feature wildflowers, wetlands and traditional orchards.

A key feature for Jerram is the meeting space at the centre of the trees: “I saw a news story on Bristol24/7 about a massive new forest south of Bristol, it seemed really exciting,” he said of his initial inspiration behind the work.

“But there didn’t seem to be any cultural input and there seemed to be an opportunity to embed community involvement, to leave space for other people to be creative.

“So we’ve designed this artwork that will take 50-100 years to grow which is quite weird, the idea of making an artwork that won’t be fully formed while I’m alive.

“There are multiple avenues that people can walk through, different species that will be flowering at different times of year, and in the middle 12 oak trees create a giant circle that can be used for educational activities, weddings, musical events… I’m hoping this artwork will create a sense of ownership, that people will see it as a resource for the community.”

Jerram and ANT are now inviting people to actively contribute to the project by sponsoring a tree which will help to fund the forest’s remaining planting.

Luke Jerram explained the concept of Echo Wood at an event at his workshop at the Paintworks, watched over by his sun artwork Helios

Jerram is “delighted” to be working on a project that is actively tackling environmental issues.

“Britain is one of the most depleted countries in Europe in terms of tree cover,” he said. “There is a movement towards reforesting which will help with the climate crisis. In terms of our risk of flooding, by replanting trees we can hold on to that soil, slow down the water flow. It will be better for air quality and pollution.

“It feels good to be physically doing something about these things. It’s nice to use my skills in creativity and communication to do projects that are going to make a difference.”

Avon Needs Trees have been running nature-based workshops with local schools, women’s groups and community members, inviting them to contribute to Echo Wood and the Lower Chew Forest project

The artist, who has had over 900 exhibitions around the globe, explained that the artwork was designed to reflect ancient monuments while passing the baton on to future generations.

“I thought Bristol could have a tree cathedral but actually people aren’t really religious any more and the shape of a cathedral is a crucifix which is an item of torture.

“To create an artwork out of concentric circles seems more related to nature, time, cycles and processes. That’s why we’ve got 365 trees, one for each day of the year, and the trees will be aligned so at the solstice they will do interesting and exciting things.

“It’s very much referring to ancient monuments like Stonehenge and Avebury, but also references and connects to the band of land-base artworks going back to the 1960s.”

Tree planting has already started on the Lower Chew Forest site in the Chew Valley, and the public are now invited to get involved in Echo Wood by sponsoring a tree and helping with planting this winter

ANT need to raise £250,000 to get the remaining 70,000 trees of Lower Chew Forest in the ground. Each of the Echo Wood trees is available for sponsorship, with donors being invited to plant the tree and leave a message for children or grandchildren to pick up in the years to come.

Tree sponsorships vary, with different projected values for the native species that include hawthorn, dogwood, cherry, maple, crab apple and oak.

Suggested donations range from £100 for to £7,500 for the twelve central oaks while the Hawthorn Community Fund is open for those wishing to make a smaller contribution, and will help plant trees including the Hawthorn hedgerow that encircles the artwork.

“We’ve structured the sponsorships so that as many people as possible can play a part in creating this living artwork,” said Dave Wood, Avon Needs Trees’ chief executive. “Every donation, large or small, supports both the artwork itself and the wider creation of Lower Chew Forest.”