York College Students Make Seat For The Arboretum Trust

Final year Higher National Certificate learners studying furniture design and restoration/conservation at York College have been lucky to secure the design and making of a seat for the Arboretum Trust at Castle Howard as one of their primary units on the course.

The group of three students met with the chief arborist, Mr. Neil Batty, to discuss the design and were told the seat should encompass the theme of ‘trees’. The result is an eight foot long english oak seat in four parts, each designed like the leaves of a whitebeam tree, supported on a bracketed underframe. The timber for the seat was harvested from the Castle Howard estate.

The pinnacle in the centre of the seat, representing the stalks of the leaves, is the work of Mr. James Morris, architectural blacksmith from Terrington.

Says course tutor John Apps “York College has a wealth of experience in the furniture industry and we are fortunate to have in close proximity a splendid country house and museums offering the opportunity for us to explore and to offer specialist help and guidance, establishing a common understanding and appreciation of this very special heritage and resource.”

"The ideals of natural beauty and function that underpin the arboretum are fully met by this beautifully created seat. Set in a tranquil, sylvan glade, in its design it offers the arboretum's visitors both rest and contemplation, and I am personally delighted by this cooperative contribution from the York College students." John Simmons, VMH, Arboretum Curator.