Simon O’Rourke, an environmental artist from North Wales, created this majestic hand wooden sculpture. Its story is also as stunning and interesting as the sculpture itself.

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This 50 ft wooden sculpture is called Giant Hand of Vyrnwy

“I found out through a friend that the tallest tree in Wales had been storm damaged and was due to be felled, and that Natural Resource Wales, who were in charge of the site, were going to commission an artist to carve the tree,”

The tallest tree in Wales was damaged and the artist came up with the idea to carve it

“I searched the internet for the right person to talk to, and on finding them, I got permission to submit a design! I was really excited at the prospect of carving this giant and creating a memorial for such a well-known landmark!”

“I began researching the area and found the area of woodland that contained the tree was known as the Giants of Vyrnwy”

“I began researching the area and found the area of woodland that contained the tree was known as the Giants of Vyrnwy. This got me thinking and I decided on a giant hand, symbolizing the giants, and the tree’s last attempt to reach for the sky!”

“I loved working on the hand sculpture, it reminded me just how small we are”

“My designs were chosen and I immediately got to work planning. Scaffold was needed to make it safe to work on, and the terrain was such a difficult one that it took two days to erect the scaffold!” explains the artist. “Six days of intense work followed using chainsaws and grinders. I needed to add two pieces for the thumb and little finger, as the tree wasn’t wide enough to form the whole hand. After completion, the sculpture was coated in Tung Oil, a natural plant-based oil safe for proximity to waterways.”

Obviously, if you’d like to get a personal sculpture like this one, you’d have to pay around $12,000

“The client was really pleased with the result and said that it was a fitting reminder of the tree,” writes the artist. “I loved working on the hand sculpture, it reminded me just how small we are compared to some of the living organisms on this planet! All in all, a humbling experience!”