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In 2015, creative and campaigner Gustav Metzger embarked on one of his last significant endeavors. Recognized for pioneering auto-destructive art, Metzger had dedicated his life to responding to human struggles from nuclear disarmament to ethical eating. Via a concise video message, he made a plea for a international event to remember nature.

“I call upon you for your participation in this international summons for a day of action to commemorate our planet on November 4th, 2015,” he declared, urging artists and creatives to oppose the ongoing loss of species. “Our responsibility is to help the public recall of the richness and complexity in nature … and by doing so creativity will explore territories that are naturally imaginative.”

The Inception of Environmental Reflection

In this way Remember Nature came into being, a day when creatives nationwide developed works to the unfolding climate catastrophe. An organizer, who supported Metzger in his final years, remembers his sense of urgency. “He had a profound sense of urgency for him at the close of his days,” she says. “I urged him – let’s not mess around. We shouldn’t hold back for funding or for anyone to authorize this. Take action immediately.”

A Decade Later

A decade on, the initiative may not have sparked the widespread change across the arts that Metzger had envisioned, but organizers feel its influence can still be observed in initiatives like cultural advocacy groups and environmental protests, as well as in how creatives consider the environmental impact of their methods. For this purpose she is reviving it to celebrate its decade milestone. Part of the 18 lead artists participating now are Cornelia Parker and Anya Gallaccio. They have all produced imagery, shared messages, and created artworks set to be presented on the fourth of November next year.

Cultivating Awareness

When speaking to one participant, she is working outdoors in a rural area, helping plant apple trees that will create a coiled garden. Engaging schoolchildren, her project is somewhat artistic and somewhat instructive. As she explains, the preparation and sowing sessions have already involved learning about measurements (spacing the gaps in the orchard), biology (studying the apple’s DNA), and geography (researching the backgrounds of how different apples arrived in Britain).

Many of the apples were selected because they’ve got amusing labels such as the other unusual varieties. We have one apple that produces red juice

“Many of the apples were chosen because they’ve got humorous titles such as the Duck’s Bill,” says Gallaccio. “We have one apple that releases red juice. They all have background narratives. The historical cultivar was introduced by the Romans. The Flower of Kent is the apple that descended from a tree and struck Isaac Newton’s head.”

She hoped the children to be more actively aware of the natural world and the control we have over it. “In their experience, apples were just things you find in a supermarket, so I was prompting them, next time they were out, to check the packaging and see their names and their origin. Perhaps it indicates Kent!”

Cultural Projects Throughout Britain

Within the city, a participant’s project on disappearance will involve participants looking through an art institution on a mission to find the ice masses that have been disappeared in the past decade. All formations will be depicted on the museum surfaces using ultraviolet markers. Whenever one is found, a alert will occur and a performance will be performed to honor that particular glacier.

Meanwhile, up in another location, an artist will be putting on a free exhibition about our disconnection from the land, as well as holding a shared meal, prepared with regional food. Over in Newcastle, Uta Kögelsberger is streaming her musical project, in which community vocalists undertake a task to perform for vegetation in a local park.

Young Insights

Like Gallaccio, another participant will be collaborating with schoolchildren – on the actual event she is aiming to decorate an art space in kids’ letters and drawings that express their hopes and fears for the tomorrow. “Kids’ art are compelling because they’re not as inhibited as grown-ups’,” she says in her recorded message. “The contributions of youth to the world is something truly special and perhaps it can provoke a awareness of obligation from us all. Kids are unbiased. They have concerns for tomorrow. But let’s not make it about anxiety – it should be about hope and our responsibility that they see a better world.”

Remembrance and Reflection

A participant’s work also resonates for children. Drawing on past experience, his Birds Can Fly involves illustrating avians and then dressing up as them – and for Remember Nature day he is planning to represent Liverpool’s famous Liver bird. He is also conducting a guided walk of the city, stopping at places that have been part of his Pansy Project over the recent decades. The project began when he experienced multiple occurrences of prejudice on a particular day. To counter this, Harfleet decided to place a bloom at the site of each occurrence and document it – the project has since spiralled to include incidents reported by other people across the world. “I place the plants there but they fade quickly,” says Harfleet. “Reportedly wildlife enjoys them, so they’re a ephemeral memorial.”

He picked the flower not just for the direct association – it has long been a derogatory label – but also because its etymology comes from the French verb, penser, to think. “It became associated with a man who is reflective, and that, of course, is a terrible thing,” he says.

The plan on Remember Nature day is to sow flowers at new locations and also refresh the memorials in places he has previously memorialised, all the while discussing with those on the walking tour about the incidents and his personal experiences. “I’ve recorded quite a few since I last planted,” he says sadly.

Advancing Positively

Harfleet hopes his work – and