When Art and Nature Collide

Added: 2026-05-12

[00:00:00]My love for hiking in the British countryside started about 40 years ago when my parents [music] brought me here to the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, to this special spot in particular.

[00:00:15]So, keep your eyes open, Charlie.

[00:00:17]There's supposed to be some sort of art installation around here somewhere.

[00:00:23]This is called Cathedral by Kevin Atherton. It's one of the original works that established the Forest of Dean Sculpture Trail when it launched in 1986. An avenue of trees creates a sense [music] of a cathedral's aisle and the experience of awe that such impressive architecture evokes. Happy 40th birthday, you massive stained glass window.

[00:00:50]Just [music] hang in there in the forest. There are currently 18 sculptures on the 4.8 mile forest trail.

[00:00:59]There are a few shortcuts and easier loops for those with wheelchairs, young children, or lazy people who just want to look at a couple of sculptures and then get back to the cafe and the Wi-Fi. We won't show you them all in this video because that would spoil the adventure, but we'll have a closer look at [music] a few of our favorites. Iron Road by Keir Smith, 1986.

[00:01:26]20 carved jarrah wood railway sleepers represent the train line that used to run through the forest. We actually made another video about an abandoned gold mine and a train tunnel, which is about 5 miles over in that direction, and we were brave enough to actually go inside the tunnel and film it for your pleasure. I'll leave a link in the description if you want to go and watch that video. Each sleeper illustrates an aspect [music] of the forest from smelting to writing >> [music] >> charcoal to hunting. Hunting because this forest was used as a royal hunting ground from, we think, as far back as the Roman occupation all the way up to the 17th century. [music] So, now you know.

[00:02:33]I done it. This is House by Miles Davis, 1988. Reminiscent of the mine shafts that Oh, but by the way, I'm using the free downloadable map and info sheet that you can get from the Forest of Dean Sculpture Trail website. I'm not one of these people that that play on their phone while they're supposed to be enjoying nature. I'm not.

[00:03:00]Well, I am I I am now.

[00:03:02]But that doesn't count. Reminiscent of the mine shafts that probe deep into the forest below, this house also alludes to the forest being a home to many. [music] I guess they mean like squirrels and frogs, right? Some of the sculptures are built to last for just a couple of years, some of them for decades, maybe even centuries, and some eventually break down and start to melt back into the forest.

[00:03:33]Join the 300,000 annual visitors and walk the Forest of Dean Sculpture Trail. You don't have to be into sculpture or [music] fine art.

[00:03:45]Let nature be your gallery. If you would like to support the work we do here, you can use Buy Me a Coffee, which is an online tipping service. [music] You can visit the merch store and get yourself a t-shirt or some socks, I think. Or you can join our Patreon where you can watch all of our videos ad-free and a week early.

[00:04:09]Thank you.

[00:04:11]No, that's a pot. That's a That's a squid. No, that's a pot. That's the neck of the pot with either flowers in it or fire coming out of it. It's not a squid.

[00:04:21]>> It looks like a squid to me, man.

[00:04:22]>> It's not a squid. What's a squid doing in the in the middle of a forest?

[00:04:27]The squid [music] the squid of the forest. All right, it's a squid.

[00:04:32]>> [music] [music] [music]