In cities all around the world, festive tree displays are a highlight of the season. Beautiful and inspiring trees are created by designers who combine festive traditions and contemporary design.

This year, in partnership with Dundee City Council, we have commissioned five designers and creative practitioners to create bespoke and unique ‘Christmas Trees’ as part of Dundee’s Festive Celebrations.

The Trees form part of a display located beside Dundee’s Living Christmas Tree at City Churches.

Rather than simply decorating a tree, the brief sought designers who would create a ‘tree’ which tells its own story. The ‘Christmas Tree’ was the central focus and inspiration, but final designs could have any form and we now have 5 very different trees from the same brief.

Considering the environmental impact of large-scale festivities and the commitment from the city to celebrate our own living Christmas tree, this project centres the principles of reduce, reuse and recycle. All elements of the trees and their decorations are made from 100% reused or recycled materials.

Each tree has its own story in sustainability and design.

 

Unity in Diversity by Carrie Varjavandi

Trees have always been revered in all cultures. The “Clootie Trees” that travelling people in Scotland created have their parallel in Mongolia where strips of cloth are tied to trees and prayers are offered for loved ones.

Carrie’s tree comprises of textile elements created by many hands. The Kindred Clothing project was the first to participate in workshops to create wrappings for this tree. They used leftover fabric from sewing projects and Dundee fashion brand Isolated Heroes. More leftover materials were added to by subsequent groups that participated. Children from Andie’s Sewing School, pupils and staff from Baldragon Academy, students from the University of Dundee, the Thursday Group at the Maxwell Centre, the Baha’i Community of Dundee, Carrie’s friends and neighbours all contributed their efforts to make the 800 plus wrappings that were needed to clothe the tree.

Bringing all the multi-coloured and textured wrappings together in the form of a Christmas Tree creates a colourful and exuberant celebration of unity in diversity.

 

Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree by Caishnah Nevans

Caishnah’s tree perfectly embodies her love of vinyl records with her work surrounding music and memories. The tree reflects the important part music plays in festive memories as well as giving records a new lease of life.

Despite the recent revival in vinyl sales, it is still very much a medium that is easily damaged and therefore rendered useless. The records were sourced from record shops and auction sites throughout Scotland.

Caishnah returned to live in Dundee in 2021 to be closer to her family and help her dad close his business to retire. The fabrication materials came from her father’s scrap yard of building materials and working together made this a special retirement project, as well as reflection of the important of family at Christmas time.

The inspiration for the tree came from the record tile print which is used often in Caishnah’s designs for her brand Lola Polooza and her love of projects that spark musical memories and discussions around music.

Twitter: @lolapoloozauk

Instagram: lolapoloozauk

 

Tree by Helm Young Team with Barry Reed

Last year some of the local young people aged 16 -18 attending Helm came up with the idea of making wooden Christmas Trees made from recycled pallets.

When discussing the idea of this competition some of the young people attending Helm now thought of using the idea of last year’s tree and updating it to with the guidance and support of Helm Instructors, Barry – Furniture designer/maker background, Audrey Art Therapist/Artist and Malcolm, Spick and Spanners mechanic/welder, of making a tree with a Spiral Design.

Facebook: /helmtraining

 

Retro Celebrations by Billy Hutchison 

Billy graduated from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design in 2001 and currently lives/works as an Artist/Illustrator in Dundee, Scotland, mainly painting landscapes for private commissions. Having taken part in his first public Wild in Art trail Oor Wullie’s BIG Bucket Trail in 2019, Billy went on to take part in Dundee’s Festive Windows project in 2020, and the Rocket Round Leicester trail in 2021, and now Dundee’s Designer Christmas Trees too.

For Billy’s tree, he used recycled/used aluminium soft drink cans as they are malleable and light. The pyramid shape of the tree is inspired by the rooftops of turrets of buildings in Dundee and from 1960’s aluminium ornamental vintage Christmas trees.

Twitter: @hutchison2014

Instagram: billyhutchisonart

 

Once A Tree by Rio Moore

Rio is no stranger to taking part in Public Art Trails she was the artist for Oor Bowie 2016, Peacock Penguin 2018, Oor Freddie 2019, Woodland Spirit 2019, Brave Wee Boy 2019 and most recently Wildlife Warrior for Giraffe about Town (Edinburgh).

In recent years Rio has moved towards community-based art, leading on the development of community arts projects for ScrapAntics, a creative recycling company based in Dundee. She lead on such projects as Festival of Light, Reflections and Moby a 10ft whale made completely out of recycled materials for COP26 and currently to be found in the Wellgate.

For ‘Once a Tree’ Rio was inspired by the papier-mâché dome at Mills Observatory as a way of utilising recycled materials; the majority of which were once a tree – She liked the notion that it’s come full circle and is a reminder of how much paper and card gets used at this time of year.

Spot the reference to peacock feathers at the top! A homage to Dundee’s links with India.

Facebook: /kitchimama

Instagram: @kitchimama

 

The trees will be on display until 29 December 2022.