Excerpt: Socarrado, an installation by Nomad Studio, transforms the trace of wildfire into a collective act of healing and remembrance. Composed of burnt juniper trees recovered from the site, the circular form retains the evidence of fire while echoing what was once a forest. Inspired by traditional rural refuges, the work invites silence, introspection, and the restoration of an essential bond with the land, a refuge within a hostile landscape.
Project Description
[Text as submitted by architect] Socarrado, an installation by Nomad Studio, was presented in the fall of 2025 and is now a permanent feature of the Sabinares del Arlanza – La Yecla Natural Park (Burgos, Spain). The Municipality of Santo Domingo de Silos and the Natural Park authorities decided to permanently incorporate what was originally intended as a temporary intervention into the territory due to the intense response from visitors.
The installation is located in one of the areas most severely affected by the wildfire that in 2022 devastated more than 2,800 hectares of the park. Nomad Studio has composed a piece that serves as a collective act of healing and a reminder of the ancestral connection between rural communities and their environment amid devastation.
A circle of charred junipers for remembrance and rebirth: The installation is made entirely of burnt juniper trees that were recovered from the site and is shaped as a large ring with a diameter of 15 meters. The trunks, which are stacked concentrically, create a dark perimeter that retains the evidence of fire. The crowns, oriented outwards, extend across the landscape as an echo of what was once a forest.
In this manner, a refuge is constructed, drawing inspiration from the traditional Castilian structures that were employed to safeguard livestock from predators. Within the circle, there is a three-meter-diameter hole that is made up of split trunks that rise to form a small vault. At its uppermost point, a point of light pierces the black wooden mass and frames a fragment of sky.
The enclosed penumbra, the verticality of the space, and the scent of resin, which emanates from the cut trunks themselves, create an atmosphere of silence and introspection, conducive to an intense physical and emotional experience.
“Socarrado encourages visitors to be present, value authenticity, and restore their essential bond with the land.” Laura Santín
Socarrado’s critical reflection of the fragility of the landscape and the loss of reference points in an era in which the digital realm invades and distorts our relationship with reality extends beyond its material dimension. The work conveys a sense of urgency through its formal simplicity: to pause, to regain focus, and to re-establish a connection with that which cannot be replicated by screens or avatars.
The circle of junipers serves as a reminder of the land’s memory, the shared responsibility to preserve it, and the continuity of life in the aftermath of a disaster. Residents, institutions, local businesses, and volunteers were directly involved in the construction of this installation, which was a shared project. The process was entirely funded by collective contributions.
It has also been made possible thanks to the collaboration of SOMACYL, the Municipality of Santo Domingo de Silos, the Natural Park, Bombyte, and numerous local partners. The work is also included in the Uncommissioned Exhibition, an international program that Novo Collective has developed. Novo Collective is an artists’ collective that promotes artistic interventions that can activate public space through new perspectives and collaborative creation methodologies. The significance of the intervention is significantly influenced by this community dimension.
Art within art: The performative action ergo IGNIS, which was developed in collaboration with local performers and conceived as a ritual of awareness at the site, will be presented by artist William Kingswood in March 2026, at the beginning of spring, as a work within the work.
“A desolation, a return to nature, a refuge within a hostile landscape.”
Upon visiting the work, Kingswood highlighted the profound dialogue between landscape, memory, and collective creation, emphasizing the healing potential of art when it is rooted in wounded territory.
Along with the landscape, Socarrado rises as a silent reminder of what happened there. The trace of the wildfire is turned into a work that reminds us that even after destruction, it is possible to listen to the earth again and learn to reconnect with nature in a more mindful and humble way.
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