Sycamore Gap tree will be turned into 'people's tree' sound sculpture

The Sycamore Gap is set to be turned into the "People's Tree" with an interactive sound sculpture.

The artwork will be placed close to where the original tree used to stand, next to Hadrian's Wall, before it was illegally felled in 2023.

The National Trust scoured through several proposals with what to do with the 120-year-old timber and maintain the historic tree's legacy.

They considered burning the wood into charcoal to later use as paint, and even thought about carving the timber into instruments designed for a "collective ritual".

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Six artists were shortlisted for the commission, which seeks to outline the tree's future by reusing half of its timber to commemorate it.

However, a judging panel, combined with a public vote, decided its remains should go towards the creation of a "sound sculpture".

Helix Arts and George King Architects were victorious following the vote and final decision by the panel, the National Trust confirmed today.

The charity and architects' studio are based in North Shields near Newcastle and London, respectively, and collaborated to create what they call "The People's Tree".

The creative art, which will play out recorded reflection from "those who loved the tree", will be unveiled in 2027.

The Trust's Public Engagement Director, and panel chairman, Annie Reilly, said: "What stood out about this proposal was how it puts a real conversation between people and the tree at its heart."

Visitors will be able to scan each "ring" on the tree to listen to reflections. The British public will be invited to send in their submissions.

Cheryl Gavin, director at Helix Arts, said: "To be chosen by both the public and the judging panel feels phenomenal.

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"This project comes from a belief that the legacy of the Sycamore Gap tree lives not only in its wood, but in the relationships, memories and moments of connection it sparked."

Meanwhile, George King, from George King Architects, said: "It is a real honour to be entrusted with responding to a place that means so much to so many people.

"The tree as it was can never be replaced, but what we can do is create a place for reflection and connections."

Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers were thrown behind bars for criminal damage after they were found guilty of chopping down the iconic emblem for the north east.

The illegal felling prompted unbridled fury from the British public over the tree, which had also been nicknamed the "Robin Hood Tree".

The sycamore had featured in the 1991 version of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and went on to win the 2016 England Tree of the Year award.

Northumbria Police dubbed the offence "an act of vandalism".

Following the fury, the owners of one of the most photographed trees in the country shared out saplings from the sycamore's final seeds so that its legacy could live on.

Last year, Graham and Carruthers were handed sentences more than four years in prison.

Now the tree, which once stood at 50ft tall, is expected to take more than 150 years to recover from the damage.

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