Man + Nature = Biophilia
The notion of environmental consciousness is not a novel concept but as the world evolves so too does our understanding of what ecology means to us. A new way of thinking that has recently come onto the scene is the idea that human beings need to deliberately change their behavior and become an integral part of the environment. What that means is that we all need to return to being one of Nature’s native elements rather than a foreign one, and to learn to live in a genuine and organic harmony with the environment. This concept of harmonious coexistence between nature and man is called Biophilia.
The first time I heard this term was only about a year ago, which given the years I’ve worked with environmental posters was somewhat of a surprise. As I started looking into this idea I saw the beauty and an alluring simplicity that stand behind Biophilia and realized that it is more than just a concept — it is a philosophy. The philosophy that we all need to adopt if we want to survive as a species.
To celebrate this philosophy and introduce it to a wider audience, PosterTerritory in partnership with BrandCulture — a prestigious branding agency — launched an International Biophilia Poster Competition in February of 2020 and the response was simply phenomenal! In the age of COVID, among the riots and political turmoil, over 3500 artists from 167 countries from every corner of the globe responded to our poster call. I believe the reason for such a great reaction from the creative community was due to the fact that the pandemic has clearly shown us how fragile we are and how dependent all of us are on Mother Nature.
Selected artworks from the competition will be featured in the Biophilia Poster Exhibitions, two of which have already opened in Atlanta, GA and more are planned in the cities across the US. Due to the COVID-19 constraints, all Biophilia art shows are designed to be open air exhibits, which in a way is “poetic justice.” Just like at the dawn of the genre, when the poster was the art of the streets, the Biophilia posters, instead of galleries and showrooms will return back to its roots — to the exhibition halls of the city boulevards, squares and parks.
Following exhibition openings and answering an ever-growing demand from the public to purchase poster designs from the competition, the Biophilia project also launched an online poster shop that features artworks by the creatives who were selected as our finalists in this year’s Biophilia Poster Competition. The shop is a powerful tool that can help us promote Biophilia, but also a great platform for sharing with the world the amazing designs that are the heart and soul of these exhibitions.
It would be wonderful to find more partners who are as dedicated and engaged as the kindred spirits at BrandCulture lead by the Managing Director Jon Hutson, who brought me on board of the Biophilia project and helped me promote it together with so many amazing artists. I am extremely happy and incredibly proud to be a part of this project and to see it come to life… transformed from just an idea into an incredible, full-blown, Biophilia-inspired art shows.
We hope that the Biophilia poster show will visit LA in the near future.
Olga is an exhibition curator and graphic designer residing in Los Angeles, California. Having a passion for the graphic arts, Olga Severina founded PosterTerritory initiative that became a launching platform for contemporary art shows and poster exhibitions in the US and abroad. Under its umbrella, she curates graphic art campaigns that tackle a variety of social issues and feature artworks by some of the biggest names in the international design community.
