Press release:
The exhibition explores how many people today do not see themselves as part of nature but rather regard nature as a background or backdrop for their lives. Two individuals have been key sources of inspiration for the exhibition: author, herbalist, and art critic Olivia Laing, and philosopher Emanuele Coccia.
From a contemporary perspective, Olivia Laing has inspired us to investigate how nature in our modern, urbanized world often feels distant or inaccessible — yet remains a vital source of healing and connection. For Laing, nature is not merely a passive backdrop but a living force that actively participates in our emotional lives. Nature can break through the isolation and alienation many experiences today, fostering a rediscovery of our deep relationship with our surroundings.
Philosopher Emanuele Coccia adds further depth by reminding us of our ecological age, where the environmental crisis necessitates a new way of thinking about our relationship with nature. He emphasizes that we often overlook what truly nourishes us when we treat nature as a passive background rather than an integrated part of life. Coccia suggests that we can build genuine connections by naming and recognizing individual elements of nature — for example, trees in urban environments — just as we would name wild animals if they suddenly appeared nearby. This approach opens a new way to relate to nature, based on care and presence.
The exhibition centers on landscape, nature, and urban environments — from the trees lining city streets, to the parks where people gather, and even the small green spaces that form part of our daily lives. What matters most is not the scale or location of nature, but your relationship to it. Historically, landscape painting often focused on grand, sweeping vistas that captured expansive views of nature.
In contrast, this show aims to take a closer, more intimate look at the elements of nature, inviting viewers to engage deeply with its details. The exhibition hopes to encourage us to rediscover and renew our relationship with the environment, so that we no longer see nature merely as a backdrop for human activity, but as a vital and intertwined part of who we are. In this way, we aim to create space for reflection on our place in nature, and how we can open ourselves to its presence and strength — whether in wild landscapes or urban settings — at a time when connection to it is more important than ever.
Inspired by the poet John Clare, we have let his words frame the exhibition: ”All nature has a feeling: woods, fields, brooks are life eternal: and in silence they Speak happiness beyond the reach of books; There's nothing mortal in them; their decay is the green life of change; to pass away and come again in blooms revivified. Its birth was heaven, eternal is its stay, and with the sun and moon shall still abide beneath their day and night and heaven wide.”
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