Toxic Surf: Nature Festival artists speak to a community in crisis

The relationship between people and nature has been deeply influential to artists across cultures, continents and centuries.

Now in its sixth year, South Australia’s Nature Festival has expanded to feature over 300 nature-inspired events across the state, with a range of visual arts projects that highlight the importance of this connection.

Amber Cronin, one of festival’s founding directors and its Arts and Culture curator, explains that the core mission of the festival is to reframe South Australians’ relationship with nature.

“It is a purpose-driven festival with the belief that people are going to have a more connected relationship with the living world if they’re moved by something unique or emotive,” explains Cronin. “What better way to do that than through cultural tools like visu