Slieve Gullion sculptural benches

Nestled in the Ring of Gullion, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, lies Slieve Gullion Forest Park. It is the home of legendary figures and mythic stories, and is a place where geology, archaeology, nature and cultural heritage comes to life.

Our challenge was to interpret and tell the stories and history of this place, in a light-touch way, to complement but not overpower the beauty of the site itself. The design developed from a solid foundation of research into the geology and history of the local area, including folklore and legends passed down over generations. The combination of natural forces at play with people’s multi-layered interpretations of the site provided a rich source of inspiration for design which is sympathetic to its environment, engages people’s senses and emphasises the unique qualities of this special site.

For one aspect of the overall project, we developed sculptural bench seating for visitors to enjoy the view of the stunning surrounding countryside. This was crafted to respond to the natural environment in material and shape. Historic names for the landscape were engraved into the stone, ensuring their namesakes would live on long after the storytellers were gone. Beautiful and functional, informative and imaginative, these benches would be an unique experience–not only could you admire the natural beauty, you could be grounded it in too.

We used Staat, a typeface developed by Timo Kuilder – a high-contrast serif with sharp cuts, well suited to the rocky environment. Irish and English are interwoven along with a poetic call to action asking a visitor to imagine the world around them as they enjoy the setting.

Working at such a large scale, the names were elegantly typeset to suit the shape of each bench. Material and type had to be carefully managed to not only be aesthetically pleasing but to be aware of the limitations of the engraving machine.

Tandem worked with the Paul Hogarth Company to bring this vision to life.
The overall project was shortlisted in the 2022 IDI awards.