Andy Sturgeon Creates Bayeux Tapestry Garden at British Museum

Andy Sturgeon is creating a garden exhibit at the British Museum to celebrate the forthcoming exhibition of the Bayeux Tapestry that opens in September 2026.

Inspired by the location of many of the events depicted in the tapestry Andy wanted to bring an essence of the wooded Sussex countryside to central London.  By placing dozens of trees outside the museum it evokes a woodland that can be enjoyed by visitors who can walk amongst it.  Birch are an emotive tree, known as the Lady of the Forest, it is a beautiful atmospheric species casting a wonderful dappled light and the white and black bark echo colours within the tapestry.

 

The museum is a vast monochromatic monolith and Andy wanted the installation to be colourful and uplifting and to signify the welcoming of the tapestry to the museum so the trees reach out towards the street entrance as if beckoning it to enter.   The rootballs of the trees are wrapped in dyed hessian replicating the colours used in the tapestry itself.  Hessian has been used as it has the woven texture of an ancient fabric.  Timber wedges support the trees and acknowledge the wooden frame of the tapestry.  Sitting within the portico at the top of the steps there are similarly wrapped planters filled with woodland grasses and perennial species to continue the woodand atmosphere right up to the man entrance.

We are on site now – prior to this Andy carefully selected 37 Birch trees to be part of the exhibition and then personally dyed the hessian himself – all 900 square metres of it, in ten different colours.

The garden will be open to the public from May 16th until June 2nd.

The installation acts as a prelude to the Museum’s Visitor Welcome Pavilions and gardens proposal, set to open in 2027 and presently in development. The project will create an inviting entrance experience for the over 6 million people who visit the Museum annually.