Claire Shoosmith – The Park – 1999
Material: Metal
Trail: Carron Crag Trail
Theme: Modern Life
Form: Realism
Maps Featured on: 2000 – 2005
Status: Still in situ, in part, 6 signs remain Sept 17
“Fixed signs to trees that were based on over-heard comments of walkers in the forest.” – Grizedale Arts Book
North of Carron Crag sited with a great view of Coniston to the left. This sculpture consists of multiple metal road signs printed with traditional verbal greetings and sayings from when out walking, positioned at different angles on several trees.
Negative Scan of Photograph taken 2000 (approximately)
It is extremely difficult to work out how many signs were originally included in the sculpture. Not least because there aren’t many photographs of it when it was new. This combined with the signs being positioned at 90 degree angles to each other, it’s impossible to photograph all of the signs in one shot.
Photograph taken 2010
Having studied all of my photographs and the original guide map image I believe there were 15 signs.
The words written on the signs include:
- “Think it might rain”
- “Look at the map”
- “Morning”
- “Have you taken a picture”
- “Watch out”
- “Afternoon”
- “Are we on the right path”
- “Did you find it”
- “Brightening up nicely”
- “Well trodden path”
- “Wrong way”
- “Twenty Minutes”
- “Turning Right”*
- “Take the left Fork”
- “At least three miles”
* Hard to make out but believe this is the text. The last one is obscured by a tree.
Photograph taken September 2017
Over the years the signs either fell off or were stolen. It is noticeable how the lower ones have gone so probably the latter. It has not been listed on sculpture guides since 2005, but is still there in part. Since 2010 there have been only 6 signs remaining. The ones that do remain are still in great condition
Photograph Taken by E. Mackintosh
The photograph above was taken around 2017/8. It shows 4 recently added signs by a member of the public. The photos below from summer 2021, two of the signs now adorn the windowsills in this property next to Wray Castle, when they were taken they weren’t taken far it seems.
Photos taken July 2021
Page last updated August 2021
Grizedale Forest Sculpture An Unofficial Archive 