Sweet Red

Commissioned by Bury St Edmunds Borough Council at Nowton Park, Bury St Edmunds, 2000

Red Canadian timber, metal, cables
5 x 500kg rings, 10 - 14 cm height, 200cm diameter

This commission is part of “Crossover outdoors’ - the interface between basketry and sculpture.

Crossover Outdoors examined the work of artists making links between basketry, textiles, fibre sculpture and land art. Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery selected the artists and developed the works in partnership with Ickworth House Park and Gardens and St Edmunds Bury Borough Council.

The other participating artists included Tim Johnson, Chris Drury, Steve Pickup and Jim Buchanan. All of the outdoor artworks created were made from planted and harvested materials. The materials continued to live out their natural lives in the landscape, inviting physical engagement as they changed over time; growing or rotting.

For Sweet Red, the trunk of a Canadian Redwood - felled after being struck by lightening - was sawn into slices and suspended with steel wires within a copse of cedars. Weighing over 500kg each, the hanging slices evoke feelings of apprehension and awe, heightened by the dramatic light inside the space.