AT first glance, an eye-catching new piece of artwork in Somerford Keynes would appear to have been caused by a particularly careless driver, or perhaps a seldom seen tornado sweeping through the Cotswolds.

But a closer look at Dave Hartland’s imaginative sculpture shows that the tree is far from a natural species, it being made up of old car engines, and the car perching precariously on top is not there by accident.

The tree sculpture can be found at the Elemental Sculpture Park in Somerford Keynes, which is currently featuring more than 140 works of art by 50 sculptors in this year’s thought-provoking exhibition.

The works sit in a 10-acre site of woodlands, ponds, gardens and meandering paths; known by the Hartlands family simply as ‘the Land’.

Dave, the man behind the sculpture park, is showcasing an array of his artwork and told the Standard about his tree sculpture plan when our photographer Paul Nicholls visited recently.

Paul went back there last Tuesday to check out the finished article which was eight weeks in the making, complete with exhaust pipes as branches.

The body of the tree is made up of 26 engine blocks and the car caught in the menacing, sprawling canopy above, is a classic Morris Minor.

The exhibition is open daily from 10.30am to 5pm (last admission at 4pm), except Tuesdays and Wednesdays. It runs until September 30. The gallery will also be open throughout December.

More of Dave’s work, along with that of Naomi Blake, Lucy Unwin and Philip Blacker, will be on show.

Admission is £5. For more information, email david_hartland@aol.co.uk or ring 07927 028558.