1st great phase in human history: move from caves to farms, emergence of 1st civilisations and global faiths. Through it all: struggle to control nature, moving away from it, no longer living as just one part of the natural world
Humans began to try to understand nature for the first time: Song dynasty in China, Islamic world, Scientific Revolution, industrial era, humans came to appreciate and understand nature whilst beginning to dominate and control it.
The art of the last 100 years reflects how we swapped nature for progress (first half of the 20th century) before rediscovering its beauty following WWII and how today's artists are re-imagining our future relationship with nature.