During the Nash at Kew exhibition at Kew Gardens in 2012/13, David Nash had an outdoor workshop called The Quarry where visitors could either watch him creating future artworks, from an oak tree that died at Kew, or while he's not there you could see his progress.
The tree he was working on was a 300 year old oak that died of oak decline over a three year period so was offered to David Nash as he never cuts down a healthy tree. He sculpted a column from the main tree trunk while still rooted and worked on the branches to create pieces to be displayed in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery and the Nash Conservatory from October 2012 to April 2013. The column may stay but it depends on the health and safety aspects which needed to be assessed as the tree has died.
Kew's Head of Arboretum told us he tried to guess which of David's sculptures around Kew Gardens were bronze and which were wood and he got it wrong! He also told us how thrilled he was that trees are given a second life when David works on them as he only uses trees that have to be removed, usually due to disease, so this is true ethical sourcing.
David Nash told us how pleased he was to have the large 7m by 7m flat base to work on and that he plans to work in the early morning as often as possible as the chainsaw noise won't be wanted by many visitors. He also told us the sawdust in your face when working is particularly unpleasant but the finished piece makes it worthwhile. But he still prefers to use a chainsaw -- with a variety of saw sizes -- as spontaneity in sculpture is difficult but chainsaws are much easier than chipping away with a chisel.
