Rosnes Bench

Thirty specially designed recumbent benches, by Dalziel + Scullion, are positioned in 12 locations across a 300-square mile site. The artwork aims to challenge how we perceive our surroundings by acting as a conduit between humans and nature.

The benches encourage deceleration and stillness by changing viewpoint. They afford user groups an original way to experience each location, where sounds become more immersive, stimulating visual engagement with the complex and species-rich tree canopies.

Through the form of the bench, Dalziel + Scullion evoke a long history of objects designed around and for the human form, acknowledging the deliberate placing and siting of objects within the landscape, from cup and ring marks on constellations of recumbent stones across the whole of Europe and beyond, to contemporary cairns marking summit points throughout. Dalziel + Scullion’s intention is that the benches act as mediator between the visitor and the sensorial resources of the location.

The locations for the benches were chosen in collaboration with the landowners Scottish Natural Heritage and the Forestry Commission, and were selected for their diverse geological or botanical properties. Rosnes Bench has its own dedicated website, which has over 40,000 visits each year and the works are now a popular trail within Dumfries & Galloway. The work featured on BBC Scotland Out of Doors, Radio 4 Coast to Coast, Spiegel online and ETN Global Travel Industry News.