Luke Jerram’s spectacular artwork Gaia – a detailed sculpture of Earth measuring seven metres in diameter – will be coming to St Paul’s Cathedral Melbourne from late April through to the end June 2022.
For the first time, Gaia is being displayed in an indoor setting in Australia, suspended in the central crossing of Melbourne’s Anglican Cathedral.
This globally acclaimed touring artwork was created from images by NASA of the Earth’s surface and will be suspended in the Cathedral giving visitors an incredible opportunity to view Earth as it might be seen from space, floating in three dimensions.
The artwork aims to create a sense of the ‘Overview Effect’ described by author Frank White in 1987 which is a shift in awareness experienced by some astronauts who get a feeling of awe for the planet and an understanding of the interconnectedness of all life, along with a renewed sense of responsibility for taking care of the environment.
The 3D installation rotates once every four minutes, 360 times faster than our real planet. A specially made composition by BAFTA Award-winning composer Dan Jones will be played alongside the sculpture.
Artist Luke Jerram, who is also behind the Gaia companion ‘Museum of the Moon‘, said
‘I’m excited to have an artwork back in Melbourne again, it’s such an exciting and creative city. I hope that Gaia will inspire fruitful conversations about climate change and what we, as individuals and wider society, can do to make our lifestyles more sustainable.’
Luke Jerram
Dr Andreas Loewe, Dean of Melbourne, said
‘Many dream of being able to see the earth from above; to see the iconic blue globe that astronaut’s have captured for us on film. From April, we will be able to share that dream right here in the heart of Melbourne, and see the whole earth in our stunning Cathedral’.
Dr Andreas Loewe
The sculpture will be displayed as part of the Cathedral’s action to mitigate against the current climate emergency, the Dean said
‘At St Paul’s Cathedral we have a passion to save the earth from irreversible damage. We are well on the way to reaching net zero emissions. I hope that being able to see our beautiful and frail home planet will be an inspiration for many to join us in our own positive climate action here in Australia’.
Dr Andreas Loewe
Gaia will be officially launched on World Earth Day, April 22 2022. The exhibition will be open to the public free of charge during normal Cathedral visiting times, as well as other educational and artistic events that will accompany the installation.
Visit www.cathedral.org.au/Gaia for further details as they are announced.