Olympics-inspired art and architecture can range from inspiring to insipid. Of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but in our opinion artists Ackroyd & Harvey tastefully captured the spirit of the Olympics with their contribution to the London 2012 Games.Olympic Park in Stratford, London is now home to ten new trees, each ringed by a 500 kg steel or bronze band. The bands are engraved with text based on the work of Lucy Harrison, who collected information from the local communities and combined it with research from the Museum of London. Harry Pearce and Naresh Ramchandani of Pentagram designed the concept and constructed the rings.

In Ackroyd & Harvey's own words, "Trees mark the passing of time through their yearly ring growth. The artwork will transform as the seasons change, reflecting the evolving nature of the Olympic Park. The trees embrace metal rings which have been engraved with a record of the site’s history, held in branches for successive decades to come."

As mentioned above, the best part of the installation might be it's permanence, which can't be said of the contentious 2012 Olympics logo and mascots.