Time and the Forest

"Time is such an ever-present force, everything in time is either moving, changing... either coming or it's going..."

In 1977, the sculptor David Nash planted a ring of ash trees near his home in North Wales. Over time, he worked with them until they formed a surreal living sculpture - the Ash Dome - a kind of whirling dance of wood, coiled into a structure and reaching up to the light.

For decades, Nash has collaborated with nature - working primarily with wood as it grows or collapses, cracks and expands. His sculptures, even the ones not rooted in the earth, often feel alive - Three Dandy Scuttlers, like a line of dancing chorus girls or Running Table, as if a deer has been frozen in motion hurtling through the forest.

In the weeks approaching his 80th birthday, we hear Nash walking through the woods near his home in Blaenau Ffestiniog, exploring the ways in which his work has grown from the distinctive landscape of this slate mining town. And we hear time collapse through the BBC archives, interweaving the present day with recordings made between 1986 and 2019 - slipping from forests to sculpture parks, radio studios to David's own home - Capel Rhiw - a converted chapel now peopled with a congregation of vast wooden sculptures.

Time and the Forest features original music composed for the harmonium, cello and clarinet by Jeremy Warmsley. Field recordings of creaking oaks and the inner life of trees from freesound.org recorded by klankbeeld and naturenotesuk amongst others.

Produced by Eleanor McDowall
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4