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Back in 2015, artist and activist Gustav Metzger initiated one of his last important works. Famed for introducing self-destructive creations, Metzger had spent a lifetime to confronting global challenges from anti-nuclear advocacy to vegetarianism. Through a short video message, he requested support for a worldwide initiative to celebrate the natural world.

“I, Gustav Metzger, am asking for your involvement in this global appeal for a day of action to commemorate our planet on 4 November 2015,” he stated, encouraging makers and thinkers to oppose the steady eradication of species. “Our task is to remind people of the abundance and sophistication in nature … and by doing so art will enter domains that are fundamentally innovative.”

The Birth of Environmental Reflection

In this way Remember Nature came into being, a day when creatives nationwide produced pieces to the ongoing environmental crisis. One of the curators, who worked closely with Metzger in his last days, notes his drive for action. “I sensed a strong sense of urgency for him at the close of his days,” she says. “I urged him – don’t delay. We shouldn’t hold back for financial support or for anyone to authorize this. Let’s just do it.”

After Ten Years

Ten years later, Remember Nature did not incited the mass movement across the arts that Metzger had envisioned, but organizers feel its influence can still be seen in initiatives like Culture Declares and climate activism networks, as well as in how artists approach the sustainability of their practices. That’s why she is relaunching it to celebrate its 10-year anniversary. Among the 18 lead artists taking part currently are Cornelia Parker and Anya Gallaccio. All participants have created visual art, made video appeals, and produced installations set to be unveiled on November 4, 2025.

Sowing Change

In conversation with the artist, she is out in a field in Kent, helping plant apple trees that will develop into a circular grove. Collaborating with schoolchildren, her project is somewhat artistic and somewhat instructive. As she explains, the preparation and sowing sessions have already involved learning about maths (measuring out the gaps in the orchard), science (studying the hereditary traits), and history (tracing the stories of how different apples came to the UK).

A lot of the apples were selected because they’ve got amusing labels such as the Duck’s Bill. We have one apple that produces red juice

“Many of the apples were selected because they’ve got amusing labels such as the Bloody Butcher,” says Gallaccio. “We have one apple that releases scarlet-colored sap. Every one carries histories attached. The ancient variety was imported by the Romans. The Flower of Kent is the apple that dropped off a tree and landed on Isaac Newton’s head.”

Gallaccio wanted the children to be more consciously engaged of the environment and the influence we have over it. “In their experience, apples were just things you get at a supermarket, so I was urging them, on their next shopping trip, to look on the bag and see the variety and the source. Perhaps it indicates Kent!”

Cultural Projects Nationwide

At the capital, a participant’s work about extinction will involve participants looking through a major gallery on a journey to find the frozen formations that have been lost in the past decade. Each glacier will be illustrated on the museum surfaces using invisible ink. Whenever one is found, a alert will occur and a reading will be conducted to commemorate that individual formation.

Meanwhile, up in a northern town, an artist will be presenting a public show about our disconnection from the land, as well as organizing a communal feast, prepared with regional food. In another city, Uta Kögelsberger is sharing her Some Kind of Love / Forest Choir, in which local singers begin a project to perform for vegetation in Newcastle’s Jesmond Dene.

Youth Perspectives

Like Gallaccio, another participant will be working with schoolchildren – on the scheduled date she is aiming to fill a cultural venue in kids’ letters and drawings that document their aspirations and concerns for the future. “Youthful expressions are impactful because they’re not as restricted as adults’,” she says in her recorded message. “What children have to offer to the world is something distinctive and hopefully it will stimulate a feeling of duty from us all. Kids are unbiased. They have fears about the future. But this shouldn’t be about anxiety – it should be about optimism and making sure that they get a future.”

Tributes and Thoughts

A participant’s work also resonates for children. As a former drag queen, his feathered initiative involves sketching winged creatures and then embodying them – and for Remember Nature day he is planning to represent Liverpool’s famous Liver bird. He is also staging a guided walk of the city, exploring locations that have been part of his long-term work over the recent decades. The project started after he endured several events of discrimination on a one occasion. To counter this, Harfleet decided to sow a flower at the site of each occurrence and document it – the project has since expanded to include incidents experienced by other people across the world. “I leave the pansies there but they fade quickly,” says Harfleet. “Reportedly wildlife enjoys them, so they’re a ephemeral memorial.”

He picked the pansy not just for the obvious reason – it has long been a term of homophobic abuse – but also because its etymology comes from the French verb, penser, to think. “People connected it with a man who is thoughtful, and that, of course, is a bad quality,” he says.

The intention on Remember Nature day is to place blooms at new locations and also refresh the memorials in places he has honored before, all the while conversing with those on the walking tour about the occurrences and his recollections. “We’ve seen quite a few since I last planted,” he says sadly.

Advancing Positively

The artist wishes his work – and