New Art Installation at Twinberrow Woods Trail , Dursley

Written by professional artist and Club member, Rita Dee

For the last two years I’ve been involved with the planning and construction of an installation for the Twinberrow Woods Sculpture and Play Trail in Dursley, under the umbrella of Cam and Dursley u3a.

The aim was to produce a multi-piece installation to provide a range of sensory experience stations for different age groups, abilities and needs, also involving the local community.

Our initial proposal was for five permanent, geometric steel frameworks to provide a range of interactive panels and experiences sympathetic with the natural environment. These could be viewed as individual installations or as part of a collective sculpture, which would reveal itself as you move through the woods.

The stations would include re-purposed materials and community involvement. Students from Rednock School were invited to produce the four coloured artwork triangles on the theme of the four seasons as part of a homework project.

Phase 1 has just been achieved with the installation of the Pyramid based upon the sense of touch. This provides a wide range of textures incorporating reclaimed materials as in our brief, which people can feel to experience different sensations, such as prickly, smooth, cold, fluffy etc.. In making this truly interactive, it will be a benefit to all who visit the woods, offering opportunities for those with a sight impairment or other disabilities to engage with it too. Our next step is to produce a structure which will include a cube and cuboid with a focus on the sense of hearing and therefore sound. We already have a selection of items which can be re-used to create different sounds and now need to concentrate on raising funds to produce the frame.

Rita working on the art installation

The final artwork

To find out more and how to visit the Sculpture and play trail, follow the link below:-