We live in the Anthropocene, an era in which human activity significantly impacts every ecosystem on Earth, from landscapes to our own bodies. We strive to impose the order of civilization upon the chaos of nature, yet these attempts repeatedly fail. Jan Dickey, Cecil Howell, Katerina Sokolovskaya, and Natalie Collette Wood explore ways of developing sustainable relationships with the elements, matter, and the human body. In search of a balance between nature and humankind, these artists relinquish some of their authorial control and allow the “will of nature” to enter their practices.

Jan Dickey lets the paint reveal its own material behavior through cracking, peeling, and other material transformations that unfold on their own terms. Katerina Sokolovskaya relinquishes some of her control as a sculptor, giving viewers the freedom to engage with her objects through touch. Cecil Howell examines the mutual influence of people and landscape; her works are observations and imprints of the geological and ecological histories of a place. Natalie Collette Wood engulfs a piece of furniture in hundreds of plants, creating an ephemeral work that continues to evolve and change throughout its existence.

Everything Moves is a meditation on the balance between chaos and order, between the will of nature and human control, with each artist finding their own middle ground within these relationships.