Botanical Garden
Plan for Contemporary Art 2026 - After Nature. (re-enchanting) Un poema degli elementi
The University of Palermo’s Museum System takes first place at PAC2026: Four ‘environmental’ sculptures by Francesco Simeti for the Botanical Garden of Palermo
PRESS RELEASE
Four environmental sculptures at the Botanical Garden, whose bronze supports will evoke the complex branching patterns of plants. Four works of art to be experienced – places to sit, linger and breathe. This is the project by Francesco Simeti with which Unipa Heritage, the University of Palermo’s Museum System, took first place in the section dedicated to the acquisition of new works under PAC2026 – the Plan for Contemporary Art, the public call for proposals issued by the Directorate-General for Contemporary Creativity, within the Department for Cultural Activities of the Ministry of Culture.
For the Museum Network, this is the third PAC award won in recent years, following those in 2021 and 2025. “We are particularly delighted with this result,” says Michelangelo Gruttadauria, president of Unipa Heritage. “It is a project we have strongly championed, and coming first is a recognition not only of its value but also of the vision and steadfast commitment of this governing body to bringing botany and contemporary art together.”
“With this project,” says director Rosario Schicchi, “Francesco Simeti presents a vision that offers a new interpretation of the Botanical Garden’s identity, inviting the public to experience it not only as a place of extraordinary biodiversity, but also as a space for encounter, reflection and participation, contributing to the dialogue between contemporary art, scientific research, public engagement and outreach.”
The project “After Nature. (re-enchanting). A Poem of the Elements’ by Francesco Simeti,curated by Maria Chiara Di Trapani in collaboration with Laura Barreca, involves the creation of four permanent sculptures conceived as environmental installations distributed throughout the Botanical Garden of Palermo. Each sculpture comprises two bronze elements – true ‘connectors’ that can be assembled – and wooden bases for seating. The bronze supports of each sculpture develop a phytomorphic language composed of flowing lines and branches that evoke the vital processes of plants – growth, adaptation, metamorphosis – translated by the artist’s visual language into hybrid forms, striking a balance between function and contemplation.
For over thirty years, Francesco Simeti has been exploring the relationship between nature, cultural construction and the transformation of the landscape, always maintaining a dual level of interpretation: whilst at first glance the sculptures appear harmonious and integrated into the context of the Botanical Gardens, closer observation reveals their formal complexity and the ambiguity between natural organism, artificial construction and ornament. The opportunity to sit and linger amongst the works is an essential part of the experience. Each sculpture is an implicit invitation to slow down, thereby shifting from a state of distraction to entering into a conscious relationship with the surrounding plant world.
The project will be promoted through a public outreach campaign, educational workshops, an international conference and an exhibition at the Botanical Garden, and will conclude in July next year. This is the third PAC awarded to the University’s Museum System, following last year’s PAC2025 ‘Celibi. Storia di una migrazione botanica’ by Donata Lazzarini, curated by Maria Rosa Sossai, and the PAC2021 ‘Diorami. Meraviglie botaniche in 8 atti’ by Francesca Berardi and Alessandro Sala, curated by Maria Chiara Di Trapani.
