ANiMAL - Art Science Nature Society is a storytelling exhibition about the animal world seen through the lenses of Art, Science, Nature and Society. Animals are an elemental presence in our cognizance of the world; they occupy virtually all of earth's habitats and microhabitats, and they have been the subject of art since the earliest times of cave paintings. Insects, birds and mammals play compelling roles in literature and film, and they are the enduring protagonists in mythology and religion. The human population exploits a large number of animal species for food, while animal pets provide their owners with physical and emotional benefits.

The ANiMAL exhibition seeks to weave these threads together into a compelling narrative that elucidates our multi-various interactions with the animal domain via the treasury of animal-related artworks in the collection of the National Palace Museum. This aesthetic trajectory is conjoined with the One Health sciences, coming out of CityU's new Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, and the critical practices of contemporary art championed by CityU's School of Creative Media.

The exhibition also flags today's growing threats to animal life posed for example by climate change, environmental degradation, population growth, wars, poaching and cross-species virus transmission. Most importantly, the insights provided in the field of Animal Studies have increased our respect for animal sentience, acknowledging their ability to perceive and feel things, and hopefully changing our behavior accordingly.

The narrative artery that runs through this exhibition is also expressed materially in its design, both delineate and bind together the five main chapters offered the visitor in this journey of engagement through CityU's Exhibition Gallery:

• Encyclopaedia, compendia and scientic inquiry
• Auspicious symbols and homophonic puns
• Mythical creatures and bestiaries from fantasy to manufactury and the popular imaginary
• The harmony and disharmonies of animal and nature
• Revisioning animal identity in contemporary art

A.A. Milne wrote: “Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though.” The ANiMAL exhibition invites its visitors to listen to the extraordinary web of stories that emanate from the animal world, stories that we in turn build upon and project back to create a condition of universal wonder and inspiration.

Participating Artists (Surnames in Alphabetical Order):

André BELLOGUET

Louis BEC

Joseph BEUYS 

Theo BOTSCHUIJVER

朱德華Almond CHU 

卓家慧CHEUK Ka-wai, Cherie

Noah DUNCAN, 楊世傑 YEUNG Sai-Kit, Demetri TERZOPOULOS & 余立輝 YU Lap-Fai

VALIE EXPORT

Festo Corporate

Laurent Mignonneau & Christa SOMMERER

明和電機 Maywa Denki

馬習欽MA Xi-Qin

Ogden NASH

盧廣LU Guang

Mark LEWIS

柳迪LIU Di 

陸陽LU Yang

梁紹基LIANG Shaoji

Eduardo KAC

Reena Saini KALLAT

Ernst OPPLIGER

彭林及張頌仁PENG Lin & CHANG Tsong-Zung

Rob PRUITT 

邱啟敬 QIU Qijing

邱岸雄QIU Anxiong

任日REN Ri 

邵志飛Jeffrey SHAW 

Camille Saint- SAENS

王軼男WANG Yinan

Jan Martin WILL

葉偉立YEH Wei-li

趙光暉ZHAO Guanghui

趙趙ZHAO Zhao