A major new installation inspired by Winnie-the-Pooh’s latest adventure Tales from the Forest has been unveiled in Ashdown Forest.
The ‘Tree of Trees’ is a majestic, ten-foot high sculpture of a tree made using recycled wood harvested from the forest and featuring over 1,400 leaves contributed by school children from across the UK.
The project will highlight how Ashdown Forest – the real Hundred Acre Wood – inspired A.A. Milne’s stories and the new sequel, Winnie-the-Pooh: Tales from the Forest, by author Jane Riordan and illustrator Mark Burgess.
It will introduce children around the UK to the importance of protecting the ecology and inhabitants of this very special environment.
The ‘Tree of Trees’ is made from recycled wood from species found in Ashdown Forest, including sweet chestnut, beech, silver birch and oak. The branches feature fabric leaves decorated by over 1,300 children from 25 schools nationwide, from Bolton to Brighton.
The project is supported by classroom resources for schools to explore the ecology of the forest, understand how to protect the environment and discover how writers from A.A. Milne almost 100 years ago, to Jane Riordan today, have inspired people to treasure these environments.
As part of the project, children have taken inspiration from A.A. Milne and Jane Riordan to create their own imaginary names for some of the species regularly found in the forest, from the Snifflesnaffle (woodmouse) to Diamond Slitherside (adder).
The sculpture was unveiled by Jane and East Grinstead school, St Mary’s C of E Primary School.
The project is a collaboration between Ashdown Forest, Farshore – the original publisher of Winnie-the-Pooh – and Ootiboo, which creates projects to inspire creativity in schools.
“It’s been a real pleasure to introduce children to the link between the real world and Winnie-the-Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood through this project,” commented Sarah Bates, publishing strategy director at Farshore. “Our aim was to reconnect children with nature through storytelling and creativity – just as Milne and Shepard did with these wonderful characters and stories nearly 100 years ago.”
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