World Like a Herbarium: CK ZAMEK Invites Visitors on a Journey Through Four Centuries of Nature in Art
This autumn, Centrum Kultury ZAMEK will invite visitors to see the natural world through the eyes of artists, scientists and storytellers spanning more than 400 years. Opening on the 5th of September 2026,”World Like a Herbarium: Nature in Art from the 17th to the 21st Century” (Świat jak zielnik. Natura w sztuce od XVII do XXI wieku) brings together historical masterpieces, rare botanical works and newly commissioned contemporary art in one of the city's most ambitious exhibitions of the year.
Running until December 6, 2026, the exhibition transforms the castle's exhibition spaces into a dialogue between past and present, tracing how our understanding of plants, animals, and landscapes has evolved from careful observation to growing environmental concern.
A Meeting Of Art, Science And Nature
Rather than presenting nature simply as a beautiful subject, the exhibition explores its changing place in culture across four centuries. Visitors will encounter paintings, prints, sculpture, collage, installations and historic botanical collections that reveal how artists and researchers have documented and interpreted the living world.
Curated by Anna Król, with Kaja Mucha collaborating on the project, the exhibition combines works from museums across Poland with rarely displayed private collections. Several pieces will be shown in Poznań for the first time, while others will make their Polish debut.
The exhibition is organised around four interconnected themes. Historic botanical and entomological illustrations are paired with traditional herbaria, while another section examines nature through the distinctive vision of Poland's Young Poland movement. Visitors will also discover the Japanese tradition of kachō-ga, celebrated for its elegant depictions of flowers and birds, before arriving at a contemporary section devoted to ecology, biodiversity and humanity's relationship with the natural world.
From Botanical Pioneers To Celebrated Artists
Among the historical highlights are the remarkably detailed botanical and insect illustrations created by Maria Sibylla Merian, whose work transformed scientific illustration, alongside the contributions of physician and illustrator Elizabeth Blackwell.
The exhibition also celebrates influential figures connected with the history of natural science, including Wielkopolska-born Jan Jonston, pioneering botanist Szymon Syreniusz, and traveller and early sinologist Michał Boym.
Art lovers can also expect works by some of Poland's most recognised painters, including Jan Stanisławski, Ferdynand Ruszczyc, Julian Fałat, Władysław Ślewiński, Wojciech Weiss, Leon Wyczółkowski and Stanisław Wyspiański, each offering their own interpretation of landscapes and the natural environment.
Adding an international dimension, the exhibition includes a print from Salvador Dalí's surrealist Flordali series, alongside works by Japanese master Watanabe Seitei, whose refined kachō-ga compositions provide a fascinating contrast to European artistic traditions.
Looking At Nature Through A Contemporary Lens
While the exhibition celebrates centuries of artistic achievement, it also asks visitors to consider today's environmental challenges.
Historical works are placed alongside contemporary commissions created especially for the Poznań exhibition. These new pieces explore themes including climate change, biodiversity loss and the place of humans within a rapidly changing ecosystem.
As curator Anna Król explains:
We are both witnesses to and participants in irreversible changes in nature. The climate crisis is not only transforming ecosystems and the planet itself, but also permanently reshaping our culture, traditions, heritage and identity.
By bringing together historical observation and contemporary artistic responses, the exhibition encourages visitors to reflect on how perceptions of nature have shifted from admiration and scientific curiosity towards urgent questions about responsibility and coexistence.
Family Activities, Workshops And Guided Events
Alongside the exhibition, CK ZAMEK will offer an extensive programme of educational and community events.
Visitors can look forward to:
- Guided exhibition tours combined with creative workshops.
- Family-friendly and senior-focused guided visits.
- Outdoor drawing sessions in the Open Courtyard.
- Ethnobotanical walks exploring useful plants growing in Poznań's city centre.
- Hands-on activities inspired by historic herbaria, still-life painting and Japanese kachō-ga.
The full programme and booking information will be published on the CK ZAMEK website and social media channels during August.
Exhibition Information
World Like a Herbarium: Nature in Art from the 17th to the 21st Century
Świat jak zielnik. Natura w sztuce od XVII do XXI wieku
Dates: 5 September to 6 December 2026
Venue: Centrum Kultury ZAMEK, Poznań
Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 12:00 to 19:00 (closed on Mondays)
Tickets: 25 to 35 PLN depending on concessions and guide option. Tickets go on sale from 17 August 2026.
For anyone interested in art, nature, history or contemporary environmental themes, this exhibition promises a rare opportunity to experience works that are seldom displayed together. By connecting centuries of artistic practice with today's ecological conversations, CK ZAMEK offers visitors a fresh perspective on the natural world and humanity's place within it.
image credit: CK Zamek, materiały prasowe