Nature As A Muse – 2026

Curator’s Statement

Nature Through Human Eye, Mind, Tradition & Soul.

Habitable Spaces is proud to announce the second exhibition at Nexus Gallery, in Kingsbury Texas. This show is a natural fit for our unique position as an institution where the arts and farming intersect. Nexus Gallery is an arts center focused on discovering the complex art scene imbedded in rural areas. In the Spring, we launched an open call with the theme of Nature as a Muse and were overwhelmed by the response. Out of hundreds of applicants, we have chosen 28 artists from around the world whose work spans a diverse range of genres including large scale outdoor sculpture, video art and textiles. These artists have chosen to approach nature in a variety of ways. While the work varies from medium and style greatly, there are some common themes that weave their way through this vibrant and diverse artistic conversation about our Mother Earth.

For some of our artists, the connection with Nature is inspired by nostalgia, for a place or a yearning for the rural, with its starry nights, watery springs and sheds dotting the pastoral landscape. Others address human impact on nature, looking at it as residue or process. Many of our artists play with layered texture, letting drops of color sail down a surface only to be covered by another swipe of paint. The show vibrates with layered colors and shapes and the artists in it are not afraid to manipulate nature as an abstract construct, a loose set of rules to abide by – these artists let loose with the day glow, and the surreal creating surprising encounters. Nature as a Muse is a sampling of artists working with nature and listening to it call them, from the rural roads and tiny towns of Texas to the towns and forested spaces across this beautiful natural world of ours.

— Alison Heinemeier