Trees have always caught the human imagination.
In Norse mythology the first man and woman were created from an ash and an elm tree; in New Zealand, large old trees are given personal names; even Christianity itself can be seen as a journey between trees – from the Garden of Eden to Golgotha. This is not surprising when you consider how all over the world and throughout history, trees have been central to human life, enhancing our environment both physically and metaphysically; feeding our bodies and our minds.
Trees are remarkable, as individual entities (the only things that routinely grow larger and live longer than we do), and particularly when gathered together in forests, where reality and dream meet and mingle in strange and unexpected ways.
Poets and artists have always known this: trees in all the varied stages of their life, growth and death have been and remain a constantly recurring theme of painting, sculpture and literature. Trees have inspired artists to explore new ideas and new ways of expressing themselves: the influence of trees on art extends right to the present-day, as integral to Modernism as to classic landscape, while tree literature ranges from poetry to science; science fiction to drama.
Ranging from the cedar forests of ancient Ur to the living sculpture of David Nash – from the hunting forests of the Renaissance to the battlefields of two World Wars – this study day offers an opportunity to explore the many manifestations of this literally deep-rooted fascination, through the works and words of writers and artists both famous and obscure.
Please note: this event will close to enrolments at 23:59 BST on 4 June 2025.