“It is the best possible sign of a colour when nobody who sees it knows what to call it,” said English writer, philosopher and art critic of the Victorian era John Ruskin in 1859. There is indeed some sort of enchantment attached to getting lost in hues of reds, oranges and mustard yellows, never fully able to identify a universal colour name for all. Sometimes these captivating colours are not created in paintings and drawings but in nature itself. A walk through the crisp, colourful autumn leaves just goes to show it and a new exhibition at Art Seen is dedicated to nature’s colours.

Nature Knows Only Colours is the title of British artist Amy Stephens’ second exhibition that opens at the Nicosia gallery this Friday and runs until December 17. In this solo exhibition, Amy invites viewers to consider how nature offers a visual language and shapes the colours we see. The opening event will run from 6pm to 10pm with the artist present during which she will hold a guided tour at 8pm for a more in-depth look at the exhibition and its concept.

Minerals and rocks from Cyprus are abundant throughout the exhibition. Pitted with pores and striated, their conflicting geological textures suddenly take naturally to each other as they are forced to adopt a new habitat. In this moment of transformation, different energy and a new object emerge.

The abundance of any material can be a source of invisibility and therefore nature is often largely overlooked. These everyday artefacts are re-contextualised as objects of intrinsic worth against backdrops of vivid colour.

A giant celadonite inhabits both a physical and psychological space. Set upon its modern pedestal, it inspires admiration for the rock itself but also suggests a bond between the natural and the constructed.

Multifarious from place to space, from form to symbolism, one entity is never a singular thing and objectivity turns subjective. From a series of suspended ephemeral photographic prints to abstract collages that capture Cypriot heritage sites, the artist is focused on new and changing narratives attached to notions of colour. By exploring the ideas of transferability and the importance of recognition, nature knows only colours for these terrestrial wonders.

Nature Knows Only Colours

Solo exhibition by British artist Amy Stephens. November 12-December 17. Art Seen Gallery, Nicosia. Opening night: 6pm-10pm. Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 4pm-7.30pm or any other day by appointment. Tel: 22-006624