Silent Trees is preoccupied with the ecological shifts documented within the growth rings of deforested trees. These trees are found in Hainault Forest, a historical royal hunting ground in Greater London. This forest, standing since the last Ice Age, has witnessed multiple waves of deforestation, intensive hunting, shifting climates, floods, droughts and shifting ownership structure. Silent Trees considers the many human events that are recorded in these tree rings, as well as the vital environmental knowledge contained within each ring. Taking an expanded view of a “field recording” the project considers methods to record these forms of human-influenced environmental knowledge.

By documenting the texture and rings of the trees, the environmental information held within each tee ring was encoded within the print. Each ring, like a data track, carries the story of years past. The tree ring rubbings are also disturbed by the harsh texture of the electric saw cuts, that are traditionally used to cut trees down. This demonstrates the loss of environmental knowledge and history through the continued removal of trees from this ancient forest. The prints form a more-than-human archive of collective memory: between root, lichen, fungi, chainsaw, pollutants, bacteria and forest. In this way, Silent Trees records and responds to the silent, yet critical, dialogue between humanity and nature, highlighting the urgency of environmental stewardship. The prints, with their detailed portrayal of tree rings, are designed to draw the viewer into a deeper contemplation of time, growth, and loss.