Index Naturae brings together 116 photobooks published over the past five years on the theme of nature, presented on the occasion of the exhibition of the same name at OMNEFEST 2023.

Setting aside geographical boundaries, the research spans all five continents, with references linked either to the authors’ origins or to the locations of investigation. The publication takes the form of an encyclopaedic “book of books,” in which each entry—each individual volume—acts as a tool for generating multiple interpretative paths around nature, its constituent elements, and contemporary human relationships with it.

In this sense, Index Naturae proposes a system of unexpected connections that, as Gianfranco Baruchello suggests, mirrors the associative complexity of the mind. The use of the “photo-of-photo” technique, while reducing material fidelity, simultaneously expands the conceptual potential of the images, opening them to new readings and reconfigurations.