The natural world has long served as a wellspring of inspiration for artists across cultures and centuries. From the intricate patterns found in leaves and shells to the vastness of the night sky, nature offers endless possibilities for artistic exploration. Artists look to the natural world not only as subject matter but also as a mirror through which to examine human experience, emotion, and existence. Through the study of flora, fauna, weather, landscape and the cosmos, they find ways to express the beauty, complexity and fragility of life on Earth.

This exhibition brings together the work of twenty-five artists, including AES+F, Inge King, Yayoi Kusama, Eko Nugroho and Brett Whiteley, whose diverse interpretations of the natural world span continents, disciplines and decades. Drawn from the national collection, the selected works reflect varied approaches — from symbolic and spiritual representations to direct engagement with environmental concerns. Some artists use nature as a metaphor for internal states; others examine its structures to better understand our place in a changing planet. Each work becomes a conversation between the human and the non-human, the visible and the invisible, the ancient and the contemporary.

Visitors will encounter art that is cast, carved, painted, assembled and woven — tactile meditations on the natural world that span traditional and experimental media. These objects reveal the ways artists have responded to their environments with reverence, critique, or wonder. Whether evoking natural rhythms or challenging our relationship with the Earth, these artworks offer powerful reminders of the enduring connection between creativity and the world around us. As climate change and ecological collapse loom ever larger, such reflections become not only aesthetic gestures but urgent calls for awareness and care.