In pictures: Seedscapes, with artist commentary

Seeds in clay: Sculpting Wakehurst's story by Adam Ceramic

Adam Ceramic is a Brighton-based sculpture artist: a finalist on the BBC's Great Pottery Throwdown, he now works with some of the UK's biggest organisations and has a thriving social media following.

"My journey with clay began in an unexpected way—while recovering in a wheelchair after being run over by a car. Pottery became my meditation and it sparked a lifelong passion. I love exploring the unexpected places pottery can take me.

In collaboration with the Wakehurst team, I’ve selected species that are either banked in the MSB or growing at Wakehurst. Each seed has a story of survival, adaptation, and conservation, and I’m bringing those stories to life through over 500 handcrafted ceramic sculptures. I want visitors to feel like explorers—just like the real-life adventurers who seek out seeds for conservation.

Towering, solitary seed pods represent endangered and iconic species. Surrounding them, large and medium-sized pods highlight other significant species. 

Finally, clusters of smaller pods form a protective, flowing meadow around the larger pieces—just like nature’s ecosystems, where the smallest elements play a crucial role in sheltering and supporting the whole.

The Millennium Seed Bank is an ark, safeguarding our planet. Through this project, I hope people see seeds as vessels of possibility, symbols of resilience, and keys to the future."

Seed Stories by Kristina Pulejokva

Kristina Pulejkova is a visual artist based in London, UK whose work has been exhibited at the V&A, the Science Museum and the Venice Bienniale of Architecture. Her work explores how technology might lead to greater sustainability in our relationship with nature.

"Seed Stories is a series of wooden sculptures that double as pollinator hotels. They tell stories of important seeds through an augmented reality (AR) app, blending the digital objects with the natural environment of the garden.  

I worked with Dr. Janine Griffiths-Lee who heads Wakehurst’s Trees for Bees project. The sculptures are made with cedar wood, which has antifungal properties, giving the pollinators a better chance during the humid British summer. Janine and her colleagues will be able to harvest the pollen left by the insects inside the dwellings and study which pollinator species is more attracted to which tree. 

I used untreated wood and pollinator-friendly paints to create a piece that can be enjoyed by people and pollinators. Bees can see ultraviolet, green, yellow, purple and blue best; Janine and I chose to use these colours so the bees can ‘admire’ the sculptures too. So the piece is a scientific object, a hideout for bees, and an artwork designed for multispecies appreciation."

Betula Loop by James Tapscott and Studio PTY

James Tapscott is a contemporary land artist based in Melbourne whose work has been exhibited in the US, China, Japan, Korea, Italy and across Australia.

"I was inspired by silver birch (Betula pendula) seeds and the narrative of seed propagation on a micro level. I wanted people to participate in the narrative of seeds.  

'Betula Loop' is essentially a giant tent: a space that is both internal and external. People go through a gradual reduction in information about the environment, which gets distilled down to just light and shadow, and then encounter one another within the center of the space – coming together like seeds. 

The form starts at the ground and slowly rises into a flowing curve as it envelopes the viewer. This is to bring people’s attention to the ground, placing them directly into it as they become part of the landscape itself. 

The narrative is subliminal, rather than literal. I find this allows for moments of surprise and wonder, leaving the viewer open to their own interpretation of the experience."