THE CREATIVITY OF PLANTS

About the Open Call

Artistsforplants has taken up the desire of many artists from all over the world to bring their contribution towards a more conscious awareness of the centrality of plants in life, both for Human beings and the Planet. Our 2025 International Call is focused on artworks dedicated to the plants who, in response to all kind of challenges, have always been able to respond by adopting special survival strategies and healing powers that they continue to invent today. From recent studies we know that not only plants developed an extraordinary ability to thrive in some of most deathly environments, but they also developed unique healing capacities. When attacked by a predator, plants, over the course of evolution, have come up with amazing creative solutions, ranging from developing a symbiotic relationship with other creatures (bees and many other animals including herbivores and fungi) to manipulating them toward their own interests (such as flowers mimicking the female of some pollinators), to becoming poisonous when they are overly preyed upon (establishing a natural balance), to attracting the enemy of their enemy (giving off scents to attract the predator of some worms that eat their leaves), and many others. In addition, plants have created a network together with fungi, spreading information and healing substances to help other plants and maintain the balance of the ecosystem. As we can see, the survival skills and transformative powers of plants benefit not only themselves, but also other living beings and humans: published studies have found that adding greenery to the sterile environment of hospitals reduces stress and anxiety for both patients and staff, accelerates recovery, reduces pain, and increases mobility and independence. The extraordinary capabilities of plants provide therapeutic benefits and improve physical and psychological well-being, while also increasing joy and inner calm. From scorching deserts to frozen tundras, plants have developed extraordinary adaptations that show the incredible diversity and adaptability of life on our planet. These botanical survivors not only persist, but often dominate in conditions that would be lethal to most other life forms, even donating their “drain” (such as oxygen) to other living beings. So we ask artists: how might we, humans, learn from the defense skills of plants?How might we be inspired by and benefit from their healing powers? What do plants teach us in terms of creativity and imagination? International call for any kind of artworks and creative projects dedicated to the plants world. The organizer invites the production of works and proposals dedicated to the plants in the cities, growing sometimes as wonderful unexpected guests, spontaneously popping up in the most unexpected places, taking their right of citizenship.

What is Offered

The proposals will be selected by the organizers and will be presented, in form of a video gallery, at the end of the year. The selected artworks will become part of a digital gallery, visible at our websites and social medias. The digital gallery will become a virtual sensitive and meaningful art network to create and spread attention and need for knowledge, respect and protection for the plants in the cities. Full credits specifying that works were created in response to the Call will be provided.

Requirements

All authors of any nationality who have reached 18 years of age at the competition expiry date can take part in the competition. Individual authors, collectives and formal corporations can enter. Only artworks specifically related to the title of this Call will be accepted; more generic works will be considered off-topic. Maximum 3 works per Author; works that have already been published can also be sent. Submitted artworks will remain property of the artists.

How to Apply

Artworks are to be submitted by email to: artistsforplants@gmail.com. Submission should be in a PDF format including: Details of the Author/Authors: name, surname, nationality, date of birth, email address; Title of the Artwork; Explanatory text.