Telling new stories from old values

Many works have proven that memories that are dug up and given new values can "revive" an entire space.

The famous "Giant Hand" of Wales

The 15m tall sculpture “The Giant Hand of Vyrnwy” located in the “Giants of Vyrnwy” forest near Lake Vyrnwy, Wales, was sculpted by artist Simon O'Rourke from the tallest tree trunk in Wales.

After a storm swept through the forest in 2011, the top of the tree was broken off, leaving only a portion of its trunk, and the tree was in danger of being felled. Conservationists and the Natural Resources Wales Foundation decided to find an alternative, so that the once iconic tree of the Vyrnwy Lake area could be preserved in another way. And so the project to turn the lightning-struck tree into a work of art was born.

Artist Simon O'Rourke was chosen to give the iconic tree a new “identity”. Simon O'Rourke researched and learned that this forest had many large trees known as “Giants of Vyrnwy”.

So he decided to create a sculpture of a giant arm reaching for the blue sky, even though it was no longer intact. The base of the tree was the pillar, and the top of the tree trunk was peeled and smoothed like the smooth skin of an arm. The length from the wrist to the fingertips was about 2.25m. Simon O'Rourke added the thumb and little finger from the outside because the tree trunk was not wide enough to create the shape of a whole hand. The hand was meticulously carved with wrinkles, tendons, muscles, knuckles and nails, exactly like a part of the human body when viewed from a distance. The result astounded anyone who saw the work. From any angle, the "Giant Hand of Vyrnwy" looked incredibly real.

The artist spent around $16,000 and put in a lot of effort because of the size and the difficult location of the work, but he was very pleased to have created a "memorial" to the famous landmark. After the work was completed, Simon covered it with a layer of natural, environmentally safe vegetable oil.

Initially, the color of the giant hand had patches of yellow, orange... which were the natural colors of the tree trunk. Over time, the color gradually changed, "merging" with the color of the forearm, making the work more realistic. At the time of creating the hand from the tree trunk, Simon was not famous and the work was not known to many people.

In 2020, when environmental issues and climate change received more attention, the image of the "giant hand" was widely shared on social networks, making Vyrnwy forest an extremely attractive tourist destination, attracting a large number of visitors.

Installation art "Metamorfose".

When art "lightly touches" old buildings

Metamorfose is a manifesto and an installation by the creative group FAHR 021.3 that transforms a decaying, time-worn building in one of the most iconic areas of Porto, Portugal. This building was abandoned, an urban void many years ago, the result of the demolition of the old town in the historic center of Porto to create the Brige Avenue, a direct link to the Dom Luis I Bridge. For more than half a century, nothing has changed here, despite many proposals to redevelop this “open wound”. The dilapidated building has a shade of burnt coal, contrasting with the other lively corners of the city.

In a daring way, FAHR 021.3 proposes to highlight this “forgotten” space through a “provocative” art installation. The team used 6 tons of steel to create a 28m long, 11m high, 5m deep network with nearly 200 intersections, all different; this green metal network covers the old building. The network is developed using computer-generated digital techniques, evoking the image of a 3D model. The metal network “closes” and controls the dilapidated building, like an extension of the rugged granite cliff. It not only creates a clear contrast between old and new images, but also recreates the building’s past with its ancient traces, while giving the old building a mysterious color of the digital future.

The building features the latest lighting technologies that allow for dynamic digital programming, enhancing visitor interaction. Together with lighting designer Jose Nuno Sampaio of Think Light, with the support of Lighting Living Lab - Globaltronic and Lightenjin, the Metamorfose structure became the basis for the lighting project “Porto Light Experience”.

This artwork is like a “light touch” to the architecture, and residents and visitors will fill it with the process of learning about the history of this place through their imagination. This is also a new approach to attract people to the “forgotten” spaces of the city.

Metamorfose is the result of contrasting concepts: Natural - artificial; full - empty; indoor - outdoor presented by FAHR 021.3 through a synthesis project. Until now, Metamorfose is still considered a natural result of urban development and it has created a new atmosphere in Porto, honoring a space that was once degraded.

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