Art installation 'brings tree back to life' goes on display this week

Hutton Buscel Artists (Image: Hutton Buscel Artists)

A UNIQUE art installation which has 'brought back to life' an uprooted tree goes on display this week.

Hutton Buscel Artists took on the most ambitious project in the group's history when a magnificent beech tree was brought to the ground in a severe storm at the end of 2024.

As sad as the destruction was, the Hutton Buscel Artists looked upon the demise of this tree as an artistic opportunity, to not only mark 14 years that the group has been in the village, but also to potentially extend the life of a small proportion of the tree.

The idea for 'Arboreous', meaning “tree-like” was born and nine artists, through a series of workshops, produced their latest art installation, which is now “a different kind of standing tree” using sections of the fallen tree which were kindly donated by Wykeham Estate.

Though the sculpture is quite a collaborative piece, the original concept and design was that of Stasia Valentine.

The materials chosen to produce the piece were wood, glass, sheet-lead and wrought iron.

Don Barker, a well-renowned artisan blacksmith, who has previously worked on Westminster Cathedral, was invited to join the project as an adviser, and he proved to be a pivotal member of the group bringing all the elements together.

As well as producing the wrought iron stems, he also offered a wealth of knowledge and a great deal of his time, enabling the artists to bring the project to life.

Steve Fearnley of Ryedale Wood-turners prepared all of the sections of wood, which were to be decorated with individual designs from each of the nine artists.

Stasia said: “It’s been an absolute labour of love which has been months in the making, and we are really excited to share it with everybody.

“None of us have worked with sheet-lead as an artist medium before, so along with Don Barker, we all helped each other at our workshops.

“The Hutton Buscel Artists usually create an art installation every year to run alongside our art exhibition, but this is by far the most ambitious project we have undertaken in our 14 year history.

“We hope that the finished piece will not only commemorate a much-loved village tree but also stand as a lasting celebration of creativity, collaboration and the community spirit that continues to inspire Hutton Buscel Artists.

“As active members of the North York Moors National Park Arts & Culture Partnership, the group were also delighted to find out that they were a ‘Best of British Fund Winner 2026’ from Airbnb.”

'Arboreous' can be seen in Vicars Walk in Hutton Buscel, just in front of St. Matthew’s Church, where an official unveiling ceremony will take place on October 19 at 3.30pm.

The Hutton Buscel Artist’s annual exhibition of art and craft will take place on October 24 and 25 at the Village Hall and will be open from 10am – 4pm both days.

It is free to enter, with lots of free parking, and refreshments will be available.