Katie Paterson - 10,000 trees made digital

Situated in the luscious green Royal Fort Gardens in Bristol, you’ll find a wooden structure. This is Katie Paterson’s latest artwork, Hollow, commissioned by the University of Bristol and created in collaboration with the architects Zeller & Moye. As you enter, it immediately surrounds you with an intricate wooden formation that takes over the floor, walls and ceiling. The installation is made of 10,000 different species of meticulously cut wooden pieces from all over the globe.

Paterson’s interest in the realm of natural science resonated with us and our digital interpretation contains elements reflecting the prominent aspects of Paterson’s work. When you stand inside the installation, you’ll experience the play of light and shadow and we’ve referenced this phenomenon in several ways: the sideways scroll makes the images fade from black to white as night turns into day. The images change when you interact with them to mirror the way light transforms the objects it touches. The logo is an abstraction of light changing throughout the day.

When users enter the 3D version of the sculpture, they dive into a vast pool of knowledge about diverse trees similar to what they would experience when they visit the real life Hollow.