Casa Asia and the Royal Botanical Garden (RJB) of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) present the exhibition project “The culture of the landscape: The mountain, the tree and the river. Derivations of the contemporary natural and urban landscape, between utopia and dystopia”, which brings together for the first time the work of 25 contemporary Asian and Spanish artists, who have in common their personal interpretation of the landscape, expressed in this exhibition through five formats: drawing, painting, photography, video and installation.

This exhibition project, which can be visited at the Villanueva Pavilion of the RJB-CSIC in Madrid from March 8 to May 11, 2025, proposes a journey through the representation of the landscape in contemporary art with a proposal that goes beyond the mere consumption of images. The exhibition raises essential questions about the relationship between human beings and their environment and responsible participation in the preservation of the planet.

For Menene Gras Balaguer, curator of the exhibition, “The project is based on the interest that the landscape arouses in contemporary art globally and, respectively, on the globalization of a phenomenon that makes the landscape the object of an artistic and aesthetic discourse that is not alien to climate change or the need to correct the impact of human action.” As the commissioner concludes: “Nature is not just a backdrop against which our lives pass. It is our home, our origin and our destiny.” In this sense, the exhibition not only brings together images for consumption but “It is an invitation to think about our role in the conservation of the world we inhabit.”

A dialogue between East and West
This project explores the different forms of representation of the landscape, covering both natural and urban environments. It is not just about images for aesthetic contemplation, but rather a reflection on our relationship with the environment and the impact of the human footprint on the territory. In contemporary art, the landscape does not consist solely of a visual representation of specific environments, but rather of a set of discursive strategies that question individual existence as a social fact inseparable from the identity of the territory it occupies. As Gras Balaguer points out: “The landscape is inseparable from our existence; its destruction is also ours.”

In China, the idea of ​​landscape (shanshui)—which unites mountains (shan) and water (shui)—emerged much earlier than in the West. Since the Tang (618-907) and Song (960-1129) dynasties, painting and poetry have conceived of landscape as a spiritual and philosophical manifestation, where human beings merge with the Tao and cosmic nature. But today, the interpretation of landscape in both the East and the West has experienced shifts in theory and practice that have contributed to its hybridization.

In the West, the landscape began to consolidate itself as a pictorial genre in the 17th century, but reached its peak in the XIX with Romanticism and Impressionism. Beyond representing a territory, the landscape became a space of emotional and symbolic expression. This dialogue between tradition and modernity, between East and West, as well as the semiotic hybridization of the corresponding images, is the core of The culture of the landscape.

Artists and formats in dialogue
A total of 25 artists from seven countries are participating in this exhibition: Spain, the Philippines, Korea, Iran, China, Japan and Indonesia. The Spanish representation is notable, with creators such as Ignasi Aballí (Photography), Sergi Aguilar (single-channel video), Manuel V. Alonso (drawing and video), Jordi Bernado (Photography), Carlos Casas (video), Pablo Genovés (Photography), Jose Guerrero (Photography), Mateo Maté (facility), Fina Miralles (facility), Santi Moix (drawing), Marina Núñez (installation) and Ulyss3s (video).

On the Asian side, East Asia is represented by artists from Korea with Han Sungpil (Photography), Koo Bohnchang (Photography), Timothy Hyunsoo Lee (painting); Japan with Mine Kawakami (audio), Kei Takemura (facility), Michiko Totoki (installation); China with Xin Liu (single-channel video), Yang Yongliang (Photography), Zhang Kechun (Photography), Miao Xiaochun (photography-installation) and Taipei with Yuan Guang Ming (photography). Additionally, Southeast Asia is represented by Filipino artist Martha atienza (video), the Indonesian Timothy Anggawan Kuso (single-channel video) and Central Asia with the Iranian Gohar Dashti (photography and video).

Participating galleries, museums and foundations
This project has been made possible thanks to the collaboration of the artists and the support of the following galleries, foundations and museums: Galería Alarcón-Criado (Seville), Galería Àngels Barcelona (Barcelona), Galería Blanca Berlín (Madrid), Colección Solo (Madrid), Galería Elba Benítez (Madrid), Galería Fernández-Brasso (Madrid), Galería Rocío Santa Cruz (Barcelona), Han Nefkens Foundation (Barcelona), Investigación y Arte (Madrid), La Gran (Madrid), MACBA (Museum of Contemporary Art of Barcelona), Management Gallery (New York), Museu d'Art de Sabadell (Sabadell), Galería Sabrina Amrani (Madrid), Galería Senda (Barcelona), Silverlens Galleries (Manila and New York) Taka Ishii Gallery (Tokyo) and TKG+ (Taipei).

The International Contemporary Art Fair, ARCO, which is being held at IFEMA Madrid from 5 to 9 March, includes this project among its proposed exhibition visits during the fair.  

The opening of the exhibition “The Culture of Landscape: The Mountain, the Tree and the River” will take place on March 8, 2025, at 12 noon, in the Villanueva Pavilion of the Royal Botanical Garden-CSIC.

Curatorial text (PDF)

Artists' biographies and works (PDF)

High resolution press photos