Hutton Buscel artists unveil community sculpture commemorating fallen tree
A village art collective has completed a collaborative sculpture to commemorate a fallen tree, using its remnants.
The Hutton Buscel Artists officially unveiled the installation on Monday October 19 in Vicar’s Walk, near the village church and where the tree once was.
The ceremony marked the culmination of a community effort designed to preserve the memory of a fallen beech tree, which was blown down during a storm in 2024.
Founded in early 2013 by ceramics artist Shirley Doyle, the nine-member Hutton Buscel Artists group, comprising village residents, meets regularly to hold annual exhibitions, run workshops, and sell their works.
The new sculpture, which the group describe as their ‘most ambitious installation to date’, was crafted from the tree’s remains.
Each member of the group took an individual beech log and decorated it with natural forms, crafted from thin lead.
The group then collaborated with the artisan blacksmith, Don Barker, who created custom steel display rods, and the Ryedale Woodturners, who assisted in constructing the final piece.
The Vicar’s Walk installation is accompanied by a plaque featuring a short poem by group member Dee Edmenson, which says: “Arboreous: I am the tree that once stood tall, one day strong winds caused me to fall. I’m now reformed for all to see, as a proud but different standing tree.”
Another plaque acknowledges those involved in the project, which received grant funding from the North York Moors National Park Arts & Culture Partnership.
Those who attended the unveiling were then invited to the village hall to view a photographic exhibition detailing the step-by-step creation of the sculpture.