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Back in 2015, creative and campaigner Gustav Metzger embarked on one of his ultimate important works. Famed for introducing self-destructive creations, Metzger had dedicated his life to addressing human struggles from nuclear disarmament to vegetarianism. Through a short video message, he made a plea for a global day of action to celebrate the natural world.

“This is my appeal for your involvement in this worldwide call for a day of action to commemorate our planet on the fourth of November, 2015,” he stated, encouraging artists and creatives to oppose the continuing disappearance of species. “The mission is to help the public recall of the diversity and intricacy in nature … and by doing so art will enter realms that are naturally imaginative.”

The Inception of Nature Remembrance

In this way the Nature Remembrance initiative came into being, a day when cultural practitioners throughout Britain developed works to the unfolding climate catastrophe. Jo Joelson, who worked closely with Metzger in his final years, remembers his feeling of immediacy. “There was a profound sense of urgency for him at the final chapter,” she says. “I urged him – don’t delay. No need to pause for financial support or for anyone to green light this. Take action immediately.”

Ten Years On

Ten years later, Remember Nature hasn’t quite incited the mass movement across the arts that Metzger had hoped for, but organizers feel its legacy can still be felt in campaigns like artist-led declarations and environmental protests, as well as in how artists approach the environmental impact of their practices. That’s why she is relaunching it to celebrate its ten-year mark. Among the featured creators participating now are Cornelia Parker and Anya Gallaccio. All participants have produced imagery, shared messages, and produced installations set to be revealed on the fourth of November next year.

Sowing Change

Interviewing one participant, she is on site in the countryside, helping plant apple trees that will grow to form a spiral-shaped orchard. Working with schoolchildren, her project is somewhat artistic and somewhat instructive. According to her, the preparation and sowing sessions have already incorporated learning about maths (calculating the planting intervals), science (discussing the hereditary traits), and origins (tracing the backgrounds of how various cultivars arrived in Britain).

A lot of the apples were selected because they’ve got amusing labels such as the Bloody Butcher. We have one apple that produces scarcolored sap

“Several the apples were picked because they’ve got funny names such as the Bloody Butcher,” says Gallaccio. “We have one apple that produces scarlet-colored sap. Each has stories behind them. The decio apple was brought over by the Romans. The Flower of Kent is the apple that dropped off a tree and struck Isaac Newton’s head.”

Gallaccio wanted the children to be more thoughtfully connected of the natural world and the influence we have over it. “For a lot of them, apples were just things you buy from a supermarket, so I was urging them, when they go shopping, to check the packaging and see their names and their origin. Perhaps it indicates Kent!”

Artistic Responses Throughout Britain

In London, one artist’s project on disappearance will engage visitors searching an art institution on a mission to find the frozen formations that have been disappeared in the past decade. Every ice sheet will be depicted on the gallery’s windows and walls using special pens. Each discovery, a bell will ring and a reading will be held to commemorate that individual formation.

Elsewhere, up in another location, Maddi Nicholson will be presenting a open display about our alienation from the environment, as well as hosting a communal feast, cooked from regional food. Over in Newcastle, an artist is sharing her environmental performance, in which community vocalists undertake a task to perform for vegetation in Newcastle’s Jesmond Dene.

Youth Perspectives

Following this approach, another participant will be working with schoolchildren – on the actual event she is hoping to cover an art space in kids’ letters and drawings that capture their aspirations and concerns for the future. “Kids’ art are impactful because they’re not as restricted as grown-ups’,” she says in her public appeal. “Young people’s input to the world is something quite unique and it may provoke a feeling of duty from everyone. Kids are unbiased. They have concerns for tomorrow. But this shouldn’t be about anxiety – it should be about hope and making sure that they have a tomorrow.”

Remembrance and Reflection

A participant’s work also resonates for children. With a background in performance, his avian project involves illustrating avians and then performing as birds – and for the initiative he is planning to address Liverpool’s famous Liver bird. He is also staging a itinerant journey of the city, stopping at places that have been part of his ongoing series over the past twenty years. That ongoing series started after he faced multiple occurrences of discrimination on a one occasion. To counter this, Harfleet decided to sow a flower at the location of every incident and record it – the project has since grown to include incidents experienced by other people across the world. “I leave the pansies there but they don’t often last,” says Harfleet. “It seems wildlife enjoys them, so they’re a short-lived memorial.”

He picked the flower not just for the obvious reason – it has long been a derogatory label – but also because its origin is the French verb, penser, to think. “It was linked to a man who is thoughtful, and that, of course, is a bad quality,” he says.

The plan on the event day is to sow flowers at additional sites and also refresh the memorials in places he has honored before, all the while discussing with those on the walking tour about the events and his personal experiences. “We’ve seen quite a few since I last planted,” he says mournfully.

Moving Forward with Hope

Harfleet hopes his work – and