Natural journey of “Earth, Sea and Sky: Nature in Western Art, Masterpieces Exhibition” of Metropolitan Museum of Art, held in National Museum of China, starts with Egyptian civilization of 2000 B.C. and ancient Middle Eastern civilization. Then came the emergence of Greek and Roman arts indicating the turning point of the ancient civilization. The art works of this period go through the changes from abstract to naturalism, from geometric style to vigorous art expression. In the age of Renaissance, people once again came to show new interest in classic writers and artists, henceforth the new perception of nature came into being. In the 17th century, the landscape painting had broken the limitation of narrative background and artists could choose to purely describe a patch of real or imaginative countryside scenery. Nature was embodied with new meanings with the rise of the industrialization in 19th century Europe and America. When more and more people migrated into cities, the close contact between human beings and nature began to fade away while the consciousness of protecting natural scenery was on a steady rise. The invention of photographic skills opened a new door for artists who sought to describe a new type of sensual experiences. In contrast with other art media, photography could not be surpassed in the capability of realistic representation of nature. Artists are confronted with are more abundant choices in the 20th and 21st centuries, for sources of inspiration came from art history as a whole.

　　The classic masterpieces of western art at this exhibition are divided into different chapters according to the themes. In every chapter, the works are arranged roughly in the chronological order to display the evolution progress of western artists’ views of nature and the relationship between human beings and nature. Western art has thousands of years of brilliant history. The history of Metropolitan Museum of Art, though comparatively speaking insignificant, represents yet a certain part of the past closely linked with nature. The founders of this Museum are all civil leaders who are ardent nature lovers. They strove actively for the creation of the Central Park and preserved a natural green for the center of New York. William Cullen Bryant, a famous American natural poet and booster in the creation of the Central Park and the establishment of Metropolitan Museum of Art, provided the source of inspiration for many artists whose works are displayed at this exhibition. Therefore all of these four parts-- nature, the history of the Museum, the history of western art and the exhibition itself have formed a complete circle.