Glorious Gardens

The chateau grounds at Chaumont-sur-Loire, France, form the backdrop for a contemporary garden festival, running until October. Sustainability, biodiversity, bees and pollination, taste buds and continental drift are among the ideas brought to life in plants by top landscape designers, mirroring the festival's theme of partage, or division and sharing.

http://www.chaumont-jardins.com

Animal passions

Sexuality in the animal kingdom is the subject of an exhibition running until Spring 2009 at New York City's Museum of Sex. The show, advised by Stanford University ecologist Joan Roughgarden and other scientists, suggests that sex has various roles beyond reproduction and mating. Challenging the simple evolutionary theory of sex selection, Roughgarden aims to change our view of sexual behaviours to a more nuanced one, including orientation and cognition.

http://www.museumofsex.com

Heavenly houses

Credit: J. WHITE

The buildings of influential twentieth-century architect John Lautner are showcased in Between Earth and Heaven at the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, until 12 October. Having mainly worked in California, Lautner famously designed modern homes that are open to the environment, use innovative materials and take on futuristic shapes.

http://www.hammer.ucla.edu