With the Willow Sphere reopening in late August after its recent reweaving, we take a look at the story behind this much-loved wetland feature.
The Reedbed Willow Sphere immerses your in reedbed wildlife inside in a beautiful woven sphere, with views across the wetlands. Beautiful Wonder Sustainable Projects, working with local environmental artist Mark Antony Haden Ford of Two Circles Design, created this woven willow sphere that highlights the wetland wildlife at Arundel Wetland Centre that opened April 2023.
The sphere is 3 metres in diameter and has a lightweight steel frame structure, joined together and woven with willow and hazel whips over wire. Denser weaves and deliberate openings portray wetland lapwing, marsh harriers, sand martins, herons and dragonflies. These apertures help to frame the views beyond and a circular window and wooden seat deliberately offer views of Arundel Castle. Entering the sphere, the interplay of light and shadow reveal wildlife forms created from positive and negative space made from willow, a traditional wetland building tool.
The marsh harrier appears using negative space, on top of the willow sphere.
In 2022 when Arundel Wetland Centre wanted a new way of interpreting the wetland reedbeds for our visitors we selected Beautiful Wonder, a company who creates bespoke sustainable installations – evident in past projects like SKY Ocean Rescue whale and London 2012 Games Countdown Clock.
Claire Hogben, Manager of Arundel Wetland Centre said: “Our brief for the project asked for an installation that would give our visitors a strong nature connection though their senses, their emotions and an appreciation of beauty – we also wanted a space to encourage moments of mindfulness and stillness.”
Beautiful Wonder Founder & Director, Jez Clarke, took on the role of Artistic Director for the project and conceptualised the Willow Sphere.
Jez Clarke said: “Even in such a quiet and beautiful environment as the Wetlands, I felt there was greater opportunity for escapism and a 'restful moment' within one larger shape… A sphere represents one of nature’s simplest of forms, plus it conveys the circularity of seasons and life which is abundant in the landscape and nature.”
“We work with specialist teams on every project we do, and were thrilled to collaborate with environmental artist Mark Antony Haden Ford. The fact Mark is from the area also brings a wonderful back story to the project too.”
The sphere’s frame was created by another of Beautiful Wonder’s specialist (metalwork) teams in London, then transported to Mark’s outdoor studio behind his home on the Slindon Estate. Mark began weaving at his studio before the partially completed piece was then dismantled in sections and moved to Arundel Wetland Centre. Mark and his team reassembled the piece then Mark settled in as resident artist for five long days of onsite work .
Mark said “I enjoy working with natural materials in natural settings. The whips are different colours and will age differently, like this freshly cut green from Musgrove Farms, the red dicky meadows basket willow and the buff noir whips.”
Mark Antony Haden Ford is a ‘local boy’ to Arundel– growing up in Hambrook in Chichester, near Bosham. As a teenager he knew Arundel Wetland Centre from racing his kayak in weekly training sessions along the River Arun beside the site. Mark worked with willow cuttings from Arundel Wetland Centre in a riverbank restoration project he worked on in Kent in 2017.
Mark studied fine art at Northbrook College in Worthing before attending Sunderland University where he began using weaving in his art projects “I was weaving a project with ivy and some old factory cables when I realized I enjoyed working with natural materials, and they were easier to source and sustainable.”
Mark Antony Hayden Ford working inside and outside at his Slindon studio
Mark taught himself how to weave with willow on a large scale, and has been creating land art installations since 1992 all over including, Canada, Lithuania, Poland, France, Italy, Spain, USA and all over the UK. Returning to Sussex and setting up home in Slindon, Mark now takes on projects as Two Circles Design.
The Reedbed Willow Sphere is located on the Long Path just down the path from the entrance to the Reedbed Boardwalk and the Reedbed viewing platform.
