National Trust announces creative commission on second anniversary of Sycamore Gap tree felling

One of Britain’s most loved and photographed trees, the sycamore was an emblem for the north-east of England and visited by people from around the world. Its unexpected felling on 28 September 2023 led to an outpouring of emotion across the UK and globally and sparked a widespread conversation about our relationship with nature.

The commission seeks to turn that loss into a sense of hope, creative possibility, and reconnection with the natural world. Approximately half of the tree’s timber will be made available for this new project, and proposals should set out how the wood, and the story of the Sycamore Gap, can be used to explore themes of connection to nature, memory, place and/or community. Final concepts should also reflect the National Trust’s wider goals of restoring nature, ending unequal access to nature and culture and inspiring millions.

Annie Reilly, the National Trust’s Public Engagement Director, said: “Two years ago, we lost something very special from a much-loved landscape. This commission is a way of marking that iconic tree’s legacy while continuing an important conversation about our collective relationship with nature.

“After carefully looking after the wood since the felling, we’re now ready to bring it back to the people, in a completely new and transformed way.

“We want artists and organisations to come up with proposals that will inspire the public to connect with nature and the landscapes around them, using the timber as a symbolic focal point. It could be a design for a single artwork for one location or several pieces or something more dispersed or participatory. We want to reach and engage many people and can’t wait to see the ideas.”

The commission is part of a wider public engagement programme and is supported by the Sycamore Gap Partnership Board, which includes Northumberland National Park Authority (NNPA), Historic England, and the Hadrian’s Wall Partnership.

An open call for expressions of interest will begin at 09.00hrs on Monday 13 October 2025 and close at 17.00hrs on 17 November 2025. A downloadable information pack is available from today (Sunday 28 September 2025) via www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sycamore-gap-commission.

Following the open call, five artists or collaborations will be shortlisted and awarded £5,000 to develop detailed proposals. The shortlisted artists will be given access to a catalogue of the wood available to develop their proposals, which will be judged by experts from the sector, with a public vote to help determine the winner. In February 2026, the winning proposal will be announced.

Another part of the programme, the Trees of Hope initiative, which was announced by the National Trust last year, will see 49 saplings grown from the original sycamore planted in communities across the UK this winter.

The largest remaining section of the tree is now on permanent display as part of an exhibition at The Sill: National Landscape Discovery Centre, which has been extremely popular with visitors to the Hadrian’s Wall area over the summer.

For more information and to download the commission brief visit: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sycamore-gap-commission