The Works
Canticle of the creatures
THE MAYOR OF JESOLO CHRISTOFER DE ZOTTI
Listen to the presentation (English):
The Canticle of the Creatures is a hymn to the beauty of creation but also a call to live in harmony with all life. Its simplicity and depth remind us that the Earth is not a place we must dominate, but a shared home, where every creature, every natural element, is our brother and sister.
Each grain of sand that makes up these marvellous sculptures is like a small part of a whole that, though fragile, can teach us important life lessons: the beauty of simplicity, the strength of community and the need to care for our world as a family. At a time when we often find ourselves reflecting on our role in this vast and complex universe, the Canticle of the Creatures invites us not to feel isolated, but part of a whole, in a relationship of mutual respect with our planet. This vision of universal communion also includes inclusiveness, understood as a value that embraces differences and recognizes the richness of each person. Just as creation is made up of multiple life forms, our community is also founded on the diversity of experiences, cultures, and sensibilities that, when combined, give strength and meaning to living together. Welcoming others is not only a gesture of solidarity, but a way to make our humanity fuller and more harmonious.
Jesolo, like every year, is surrounded by art and culture, and it does so with the awareness that events like this are opportunities for growth, not only for the participants, but for the entire community. Together, with the contribution of many artists, associations, and volunteers, we have succeeded in creating an exhibition that, in addition to enchanting our senses, wants to think about our relationship with nature and the value of sustainability.
I invite you to experience this moment with wonder, but also with awareness. Each visit to this exhibition is a step toward a greater understanding of how we can live more harmoniously and respectfully with our world.
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR DAVID DUCHARME (CANADA)
Listen to the presentation (English):
The Terra Sculpta team had once again the opportunity to create artwork for the Jesolo Sand Nativity. This year, we intend to create a place of wonder that explores our connection to the world, an achievement only possible thanks to the collaboration and support of numerous committed individuals and organizations.
The simplicity of St. Francis of Assisi's Canticle of the Creatures continues to offer a timeless guide to how we might live today. More than a mere hymn, it is a radical declaration of kinship with the natural world, inspiring us to reflect deeply on our relationship with the environment.
We all pause to question our purpose on this planet, struggling to find meaning in an increasingly complex world. We look outside and within ourselves, seeking a point of anchor for our existence. St. Francis points us to a simple and immediate truth: the creatures that surround us are not just resources or landscapes, but family.
He calls creatures brothers and sisters, transforming them from inanimate objects into beloved members of a shared home. This perspective challenges the self-imposed isolation many of us feel. The trees, the birds, the flowers, the wind, even the earth beneath our feet are ever-present and fundamentally part of us. They breathe the same air and are subject to the same divine or cosmic laws.
The Canticle of the Creatures is an invitation to pass the idea of simple care or preservation and enter an ecological kinship. It reminds us that our individual well-being is inextricably linked to the health and vitality of the ecosystems around us.
This shift in perspective represents perhaps the most significant answer to our existential questions. Our purpose is not to dominate, but to harmonize; our meaning is found not in separation, but in our integration within this vast, splendid, and interconnected family of life. The Canticle of the Creatures teaches us that gratitude, humility, and wonder at creation are the sources of true peace and a sustainable existence.
The Sand Sculptures
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Sculptor: Slava Borecki (Ukraine)
Francis of Assisi (1181/1182 – 1226) lived during a period of profound change in the history of Italy and Europe, marked by political, social, and religious tensions. Italy was fragmented into city-states often at war with each other or within themselves, while the urban bourgeoisie of merchants, artisans, and bankers was emerging as a new headliner in economic and civic life. Francis himself came from a wealthy bourgeois family. The Catholic Church, despite holding great power, was increasingly criticized for its wealth and distance from evangelical values, feed a widespread desire for spiritual renewal.
The sculpture interprets this context through the figure of Pope Innocent III, immersed in a network of crosses that defines his symbolic space. At the top stands the date 1204, the year of the Fourth Crusade, an event that marked a profound rift between the Catholic and Orthodox worlds. The crosses, with their telescopic arms, allude to movement, change, and the freedom of interpretation of the religious message. The shaft of the main cross, which features a typical Gothic religious architecture, appears distorted and sharply tilted, evoking the crisis of dogma and the tension between faith and power. On the left side, a box filled with money and riches weighs on the structure, a tangible symbol of the weight of materiality and corruption that undermine the purity of the evangelical message.
THE RADICAL CHOICE OF SAINT FRANCIS
Sculptor: Radovan Zivny (Czech Republic)
In an era marked by profound social, political, and religious conflicts, Saint Francis of Assisi
represented a radical and innovative response: he rejected wealth and power, embracing
evangelical poverty and choosing to live alongside the poor, the marginalized, and the least fortunate. With the founding of the Order of Friars Minor, he proposed a model of life based on brotherhood, peace, and respect for all creatures, restoring the Christian faith to its most authentic and universal dimension. His life became prophetic evidence of a return to the Gospel and simplicity, in a world rife with conflict and inequality.
This sculpture embodies the ideal core of the entire exhibition: Francis, depicted according to his traditional iconography, is surrounded by animals that recognize his peacemaking being. The birds, symbols of freedom and closeness to the divine, soar at the top of the composition, while at her feet the wolf and the deer, instinctive and contrasting figures, find a harmonious balance thanks to her intercession. The work becomes a metaphor for the possible union of diversity and the overcoming of conflict through faith, compassion, and harmony with creation.
THE WOUNDED CREATION
Sculptor: Enguerrand David (Belgium)
Our time is marked by wars, economic crises, climate emergency, the disintegration of multilateral institutions, and a digitalization that challenges governance and accentuates inequalities. The wounded creation shows clear signs of suffering: climate change, pollution of air, water, and soil, overexploitation of resources, unsustainable consumption, and environmental and social crises.
Humanity's lust for absolute dominion over nature has shattered the harmony between humanity, God, and Creation. The culture of waste has replaced that of care, as Pope Francis reminds us. We ask ourselves: what kind of humanity do we want to be? What kind of world will we leave to future generations? Creation is not just an environment to be preserved, but a relationship to be healed.
In this work, the artist represents dry land and a burned forest. The tools that once symbolized progress—a tractor, a barrel, a few scattered objects—are cracked, like the soil that supported them. The arid landscape, petrified and furrowed by fractures, hosts a now shattered tractor, a symbol of the industrial society that consumes and alters nature. Nothing moves; time is no longer marked by human presence. What remains are the traces of what we thought we controlled. The wound is no longer borne by bodies, but by the land itself: a landscape emptied, fractured, abandoned by the very species that exploited and exhausted it.
A NEW WORLD IS POSSIBLE
Sculptress: Michela Ciappini (Italy)
Rediscovering a sense of ethical and spiritual responsibility toward the Earth and toward every living being is the challenge of our time. Signs of hope are emerging forcefully. Ecological awareness is growing, especially among young people. Actions related to sustainability, the circular economy, and regenerative agriculture are multiplying. Religions, sciences, and social movements are coming together on a shared path of integral ecological conversion. We are understanding that the well-being of each individual depends on the well-being of all: just as a destructive culture affects the entire world, the seeds of rebirth can spread with contagious effect, like the flutter of a butterfly's wings generating hope and solidarity. In this vision, love becomes a force that unites and transcends every barrier, paving the way for a new harmony founded on conscious choices, sober lifestyles, and a spirituality that reconnects humanity to the gift of life.
The two artists translate this reflection into a large, symbolic composition: in the center of a forest, an emblem of the contemporary world, stands a tree with two faces—dry and burned on the left, green and lush on the right. In contrast, the vital side embraces a Ginkgo Biloba, a horse, and a young woman, symbols of rebirth and continuity. The ascending forms intertwine in a shared upward motion, representing the harmonious cooperation between humanity, nature, and a shared future.
BROTHER SUN
Sculptor: Pedro Mira (Portugal)
Praised be You, my Lord, with all Your creatures,
mainly Lord Brother Sun, who is the day, and who enlightens us through Him.
And He is beautiful and radiant with great splendour, bearing witness to You, Most High.
In the cosmic vision offered by the Canticle of the Sun Saint Francis recognizes in the natural elements brothers and sisters united in common praise of the Creator. Among them, the sun receives special attention: a light that illuminates and warms, but above all it is a visible sign of the divine. For Francis, the sun becomes a symbol of the Lord Himself, the source of life and love. He celebrates its beauty and strength even though, at the time of composing the Canticle, his eyesight was severely impaired, and the light caused him pain.
In this work, the sun's glow is the undisputed main actor: from a single source, it expands in a spiral motion, radiating energy and embracing everything in its warmth. The figure of the saint, immersed in this transcendent luminosity, acts as a bridge between heaven and earth, between divine light and the humanity it warms.
The artist places the sun at the centre of the composition, highlighting not only its symbolic value in Christian tradition but also its universal significance, shared by many cultures and religions—from Buddhism to Shintoism—as a principle of life and cosmic harmony.
In the all-pervading light, Francis recognizes the divine in every leaf, in every flame, in the breath of life that unites all creatures. From this profound Franciscan spirituality, which the artist feels as his own, the work is born: a visual meditation on light as a manifestation of universal love.
SISTER MOON AND STARS
Sculptor: Vadim Gryadov (Russia)
Praised be you, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars,
in heaven you formed them clear, precious, and beautiful.
The Canticle of the Sun offers a cosmic and fraternal vision of the universe, in which the sun, moon, stars, wind, water, fire, and even death are recognized as brothers and sisters. In Francis's praise of the Lord, wonder at creation becomes prayer: each element, with its beauty and function, participates in the universal harmony of life.
Within this contemplation, Sister Moon and the Stars emerge as symbols of nocturnal light and sweetness, presences that accompany humanity in the silence and mystery of the night. The moon, always linked to dreams and the human imagination, has spanned centuries of poetry, music, and art as a figure of tenderness and melancholy.
In the sculpture, the artist interprets this theme through a delicate personification: the moon takes on the form of a mother who, in a gesture of infinite sweetness, sings a lullaby to her daughters, the stars. The three figures, reclining and barely touched, evoke an intimate, familiar embrace, in which light and affection merge.
In this image, Franciscan symbolism translates into a celebration of universal love, a force capable of uniting heaven and earth, matter and spirit, and transcending the boundaries of time and space.
THE WOLF. BEYOND ALL FEAR AND DISTRUST
Sculptor: David Ducharme (Canada)
The tactile sculpture represents one of the main innovations of the Sand Nativity 2025. This project was conceived as a social inclusion project, so that even blind people can approach and understand this unique artistic language.
The work was modelled to deliberately highlight the different phases of the sculptural process. The square shape of the block recalls the initial stage from which the artist's work began; the rough- hewn parts demonstrate the artist's first three-dimensional approach; finally, the more detailed sections, in this case the animal's muzzle, feature a meticulous finish. To the touch, the material reveals its full materiality: the typical graininess of sand, but also the solidity achieved thanks to the specific compacting method.
The choice of subject within the context of the exhibition is also significant. Not a lamb was chosen, but a wolf, the animal symbolizing power and danger. The wolf inspires admiration and respect, an emblem of strength, wisdom, and wild freedom. One must stay away from it. Yet Francis will not hesitate to speak to it, to offer it friendship, because the wolf, is a creature of God too. One cannot help but see the challenge this experience poses: to overcome every barrier and every resistance to touch a sculpture, the wolf, to draw close to what we consider most distant from us.
To ensure the full tactile experience, the wolf's muzzle has been treated with a thin layer, which will ensure it will resist contact with visitors during the two months of its exhibition.
BROTHER WIND
Sculptor: Jakub Zimacek (Czech Republic)
Praised be you, my Lord, through Brother Wind
and through the air, cloudy, and calm, and all weather,
through which you give sustenance to your creatures.
The wind runs free and wild, crossing the earth with changing force: sometimes it whispers, other times it shouts, carrying with it the voices and stories of life from one horizon to another.
In the thought of Francis of Assisi, every natural manifestation is an expression of divine will and an integral part of the harmony of creation. Unlike the modern conception, which associates wind and rain with bad weather, he does not distinguish between "good" and "bad" phenomena: everything that exists—the sun as well as the rain, the calm as well as the storm—is a gift from God and part of the great balance that sustains life. Francis praises the Lord for both the clear sky and the cloudy one, recognizing the constancy of divine love in the mutability of nature.
In the sculpture, the wind takes shape through a series of dynamic spirals that envelop the figure of a bare tree, a symbol of the earth and its cyclical nature. The wind lifts and disperses the seeds among the currents, so that they can germinate elsewhere and give rise to new life.
The work thus becomes a visual metaphor for the perpetual renewal of creation, where destruction and rebirth coexist in the same vital breath, a breath that unites heaven and earth.
SISTER WATER, BROTHER FIRE
Sculptress: Charlotte Koster (Netherlands)
Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Water,
who is very useful, humble, precious, and chaste.
Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Fire,
through whom You illuminate the night,
who is beautiful, playful, robust, and strong.
Water and fire, sister and brother, dance together in a balance of opposites. One, precious and chaste, purifies and gives life; the other, robust and ardent, illuminates the night and warms the heart. Francis contemplates them in silence, enraptured by the harmony born from the encounter of such diverse yet complementary forces.
At the heart of the sculpture, the dominant element is water, captured in its continuous and vital motion. Saint Francis appears calm, immersed in the contemplation of the waves rising and falling in a calm rhythm, almost breathing. The rippled surfaces evoke a sphere of water that emerges and disappears, a symbol of life that is born, transformed, and returned. Around him, the water seems to dance, while in his right hand the saint holds a cup of fire, a flame that illuminates and warms, and with his left he touches his chest in an intimate gesture of communion and love.
The work becomes a hymn to the complementarity of the elements, to their necessary coexistence: the purity of water and the strength of fire merge in the same spiritual harmony. Those who observe the sculpture can almost perceive a soundscape: the rushing of the water, the crackling of the flame, the silence of prayer. An invitation to pause and enter, like Francis, into profound resonance with creation.
MOTHER EARTH
Sculptress: Nicola Wood (England)
Praised be you, my Lord, through our Sister Mother Earth,
who sustains and governs us,
and produces diverse fruits with colorful flowers and herbs.
Saint Francis nurtured a profound connection with nature and vegetation, so much so that he ordered that space be always left for wild flowers and plants in the convent gardens. In this sculpture, the artist makes visible the eternal cycle of life, birth, decay, and renewal, celebrating the Earth's vital and generative force.
At the centre of the composition, a maternal figure intertwined with roots and flowers symbolizes the sacred bond between humanity and nature. Her body welcomes and nourishes new life, reminding us that every creature shares the same divine breath and comes from the same earth.
Here, humility manifests itself not as weakness, but as an awareness of our place in creation: close to the earth, dependent on it, and grateful for the support it offers us. The sculpture, through images of decomposition and rebirth, affirms that everything returns to the earth and that new life is born from humus, in a perpetual cycle.
The work invites the visitor to meditate on the humility of existence: it is in being close to the earth and respectful of its rhythm that we discover the greatest human dignity and harmony with the world that sustains us, a teaching that resonates profoundly in the Franciscan thought.
SISTER DEATH
Sculptress: Susanne Ruseler (Netherlands)
Praised be You, my Lord, through those who forgive for Your love,
and endure infirmity and tribulation.
Blessed are those who endure it in peace, for by You, Most High, they will be crowned.
Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister Death,
from whom no living man can escape:
Woe to those who die in mortal sins;
Blessed are those who find it in Your most holy will,
for the second death will not harm them.
The Dutch artist conceives sculpture as a dialogue between Life and Death: the first embodied by a young woman, the second by a skeleton. It is not a hostile encounter, but a necessary and silent presence, a companion of life itself. The two figures, seated side by side, contemplate existence, symbolized by butterflies, whose wings reflect the nuances of human emotions. An arch of olive branches gracefully envelops them, gently bending, an emblem of peace and reconciliation between what has been, what is, and what will be.
The work reminds us that forgiveness and peace are not born from oblivion, but from understanding. In the awareness of death, life reveals its authenticity: every breath, every gesture, every moment acquires fullness and meaning. In this encounter between life and death, our eyes become clearer; we learn to live with serenity and love deeply. Francis, who in the Canticle welcomes every creature, recognizes those who face suffering with courage and invites forgiveness, in the spirit of divine love.
If man often considers death an enemy, the sculpture suggests a different perspective: not being able to die would be an even greater condemnation. An integral part of creation, death is welcomed and thanked in the Canticle of the Sun, reminding us that every aspect of existence, even the most feared, has dignity and value.
WONDER
Sculptress: Hanneke Supply (Belgium)
Becoming a child again means rediscovering clear and pure eyes, capable of marveling even at the smallest things: trees in bloom, a stormy sea, the flight of a bird. Life's experiences, with their filters, prejudices, and habits, often prevent us from perceiving the beauty that surrounds us. Yet the child we once were, remains hidden within us. The artist invites us to an act of courage: to let that child emerge, to recover a gaze capable of wonder and a heart ready to savor beauty once again.
The sculpture depicts a child contemplating nature in wonder. The sinuous trunk of a tree, imposing yet gracefully sculpted, welcomes animal life—birds, foxes, small forest dwellers—and becomes a symbol of the perfect harmony between strength and delicacy.
The work invites us to reflect on childhood curiosity, the innocence of the gaze, and the profound bond between human beings and nature. It encourages visitors to reconnect with their inner child, that part of themselves that continues to marvel at the mystery and beauty of the natural world, and to rediscover the simple joy of living in harmony with everything around us.
NATIVITY
Sculptors: Marielle Heessels (Netherlands), Nikolai Torkhov (Russia), Inese Valtere (Latvia)
The imposing sculpture that concludes the exhibition offers a strikingly natural setting for the Nativity scene. As is traditional, the birth takes place inside a cave, but the artists choose to frame the scene with organic elements that evoke the love of nature, so dear to Francis.
On the right side, the shepherds immerse the visitor in a dreamlike and intimate vision: the sheep are lost in the infinite clouds, and a sweet lullaby silently accompanies the observation of the scene. On the left side, the Three Wise Kings offer their gifts and their wisdom: the wisdom of cooperation and peace between people, the wisdom of ecology and care for creation, and the wisdom of climate protection, which reminds us to respect natural rhythms and processes.
At the centre, the Nativity, in its majesty, symbolizes the rebirth of hope: every child born is a sign of the future and of trust in the world. The scene is illuminated by the divine light of the Holy Spirit, which dominates the cave, and by the earthly light of Joseph, who guides and protects the newborn through the darkness, inviting the visitor to recognize the promise of new life and harmony between man and nature.