Wave Chamber

Wave Chamber is part of the art trail around Kielder Water and Forest Park, which features over 40 sculptures, buildings and other artworks.

The chamber was created by environmental artist Chris Drury and built in 1996. Chris has work displayed all over the world and is interested in 'the connections between the natural landscape and the mark of humanity'.

The Wave Chamber is a small hut constructed using the same skills needed for building dry stone walls and is made from over 80 tons of local stone. The building itself is a camera obscura and a mirror and lens project an image of the waves from the reservoir onto a white disc on the floor. (Camera Obscuras are fascinating and if you're ever in Edinburgh, the one close to the castle is well worth a visit!)

The building is quite small fitting 3 or 4 people in at a time, and there is a stone seat if you fancy a rest. The signage outside states that the best time to visit is on a bright, breezy day and when we visited we had the right conditions and were able to see the waves moving around on the floor.

This is not a place you can spend hours, maybe a few minutes or so, but if you are walking along the Lakeside Way trail it is worth popping in. There are still a few fallen trees from Storm Arwen on the paths heading to the chamber, so take care if you are planning a visit.