162 – Chatsworth Yew Logs
Chatsworth Yew Logs
2013
Felled Yew From Chatsworth Estate
Exhibited as part of Modern Makers, Chatsworth House, UK, in collaboration with Sothebys and Gallery Fumi, London.
Each yew log is turned on a lathe to remove the exterior bark and outer layers of sapwood to the exact point (and purposefully no more) where a perfect cylindrical column is found. Although all surface irregularities are removed in order to achieve ‘regularised’ timber, in doing so the annual growth rings are gradually
exposed generating a graphic figuring of the wood grain unique to yew. The process is a rather bold, minimalist, and slightly brutal intervention with this natural material, but nature once again takes control as the log dries and the inherent tensions in the wood settle. Each log is a piece of furniture in its own right, but also used to support/ present/display other objects/ artefacts/ sculptures/fragments, directly referencing the prolific collecting habits of every Duke and Duchess of Devonshire throughout history, and the incredible collections of ‘everything’ on public display at Chatsworth House. Each Chatsworth Yew Log can be used either as a plinth for a favourite sculpture or most celebrated functionless artefact, or as a piece of furniture to support more useful objects such as a lamp, telephone, magazine, vase, or remote control.