Tree Beacon

Unveiled on 8 May 2025 as part of the Skywalk exhibition at the Venice Architecture Biennale, Tree Beacon continues Petroc Sesti’s long-term inquiry into the role of large-scale sculpture within ecological discourse. A smaller version was first shown in the Climate Room at the Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition. Conceived in dialogue with scientists conducting rainforest carbon mapping through forestry laser scanning, an early model of the work was presented in London to Sir David Attenborough whose 99th birthday coincided with the public inauguration of the full-scale sculpture in Venice.

Standing nine metres tall, Tree Beacon was selected by Biennale Director Carlo Ratti for inclusion in the Venetian public realm under the Biennale Architettura 2025 theme, INTELLIGENS. The Skywalk exhibition an official Collateral Event presented by Xerjoff in collaboration with Ocean Space and curated by Nadja Romain, situated the sculpture among works emblematic of intelligence in art, science, and environment.

The sculpture is constructed from hand-forged and welded stainless steel, shaped and polished without casting. This low-carbon fabrication method reflects a deliberate shift away from energy-intensive approaches to monument-making. Both technically and symbolically, this process is central to the work, positioning Tree Beacon as a proposition for sustainable sculptural practice.

Its reflective surface invites viewers to contemplate the tree-like form while engaging with the broader discourse on art’s role in climate-critical infrastructures. Developed in dialogue with rainforest scientists studying carbon sequestration in buttress root systems, the work asks how form itself might communicate ecological function and urgency.

Tree Beacon does not illustrate nature; it participates in an expanded field of interdisciplinary practice where collaboration is central. It stands not as a monument to nature but as an index of artistic and scientific exchange, questioning how cultural institutions and public art might contribute to planetary narratives and modes of repair.

Following its presentation in Venice, Tree Beacon will travel to Belém, Brazil, for the COP30 Climate Conference, where it will serve both as a sculptural presence and as a discursive object within an international policy and climate context.