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In 2015, artist and activist Gustav Metzger embarked on one of his last major projects. Known for introducing auto-destructive art, Metzger had dedicated his life to responding to global challenges from peace activism to plant-based living. Through a short video message, he requested support for a global day of action to remember nature.

“This is my appeal for your involvement in this global appeal for a day of action to commemorate our planet on November 4th, 2015,” he declared, encouraging artists and creatives to resist the ongoing loss of species. “The mission is to remind people of the richness and complexity in nature … and by doing so creativity will explore territories that are fundamentally innovative.”

The Creation of Nature Remembrance

Thus Remember Nature came into being, a day when artists across the country created responses to the unfolding climate catastrophe. An organizer, who worked closely with Metzger in his last days, notes his sense of urgency. “There was a great sense of urgency for him at the final chapter,” she says. “My advice was – don’t delay. We shouldn’t hold back for funding or for anyone to authorize this. Take action immediately.”

A Decade Later

A decade on, the project hasn’t quite incited the mass movement across the arts that Metzger had hoped for, but Joelson believes its impact can still be seen in campaigns like cultural advocacy groups and environmental protests, as well as in how creatives consider the sustainability of their work. That’s why she is reviving it to commemorate its ten-year mark. Among the 18 lead artists taking part currently are Cornelia Parker and prominent artists. All participants have created visual art, shared messages, and developed pieces set to be unveiled on 4 November 2025.

Planting Hope

When speaking to the artist, she is on site in a rural area, helping plant apple trees that will grow to form a circular grove. Collaborating with schoolchildren, her project is somewhat artistic and half educational workshop. As she explains, the planning and planting sessions have already included learning about mathematics (spacing the distances between trees), genetics (exploring the hereditary traits), and history (mapping the stories of how different apples arrived in Britain).

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

“Several the apples were selected because they’ve got funny names such as the other unusual varieties,” she explains. “We have one apple that releases crimson liquid. Every one carries histories attached. The historical cultivar was imported by the Romans. The Kentish variety is the apple that dropped off a tree and landed on the scientist’s head.”

She hoped the children to be more actively aware of the natural world and the control we have over it. “To many of them, apples were just things you find in a supermarket, so I was encouraging them, on their next shopping trip, to read the label and see the variety and their origin. Hopefully it says Kent!”

Cultural Projects Throughout Britain

At the capital, one artist’s Book of Loss will include attendees searching Tate Modern on a quest to find the ice masses that have been lost in recent years. Every ice sheet will be depicted on the exhibition spaces using special pens. When located, a alert will occur and a reading will be held to remember that individual formation.

Elsewhere, up in another location, Maddi Nicholson will be putting on a open display about our disconnection from the land, as well as organizing a communal feast, made using sustainable ingredients. Further north, Uta Kögelsberger is streaming her environmental performance, in which local singers begin a project to use music to heal flora in a green space.

Youth Perspectives

Similar to other artists, another participant will be working with schoolchildren – on the scheduled date she is planning to decorate a cultural venue in youth creations that capture their aspirations and concerns for the future. “Kids’ art are powerful because they’re not as trammelled as adults’,” she says in her recorded message. “Young people’s input to the world is something truly special and perhaps it can provoke a sense of responsibility from everyone. Kids are unbiased. They have fears about the future. But let’s not make it about worry – it should be about optimism and making sure that they have a tomorrow.”

Memorials and Memory

Paul Harfleet’s work also resonates for children. As a former drag queen, his feathered initiative involves illustrating avians and then embodying them – and for the event he is aiming to tackle a local symbol. He is also organizing a guided walk of the city, exploring locations that have been part of his ongoing series over the past twenty years. This endeavor started after he faced several events of homophobic abuse on a particular day. To counter this, Harfleet decided to plant a pansy at the spot where it happened and document it – the project has since expanded to incorporate experiences experienced by other people across the world. “I place the plants there but they don’t often last,” says Harfleet. “It seems wildlife enjoys them, so they’re a ephemeral memorial.”

He picked the flower not just for the direct association – it has long been a term of homophobic abuse – but also because its name derives from the French verb, penser, to think. “People connected it with a man who is thoughtful, and that, of course, is a terrible thing,” he says.

The intention on the event day is to place blooms at fresh spots and also refresh the memorials in places he has previously memorialised, all the while conversing with those on the guided walk about the occurrences and his recollections. “We’ve seen quite a few since I last planted,” he says mournfully.

Moving Forward with Hope

The artist wishes his work – and