See our planet like never before with Gaia by Luke Jerram. Visitors will be able to gaze upon the Earth as if from space, without ever having to leave the atmosphere.
The awe-inspiring art installation is by the same artist who first brought Museum of the Moon to Melbourne in 2018. For the first time his stunning artwork is being displayed in an indoor setting in Australia, suspended in the central crossing of Melbourne’s St Paul’s Cathedral.
Measuring seven metres in diameter, the internally-lit sphere is 2.1 million times smaller than the real Earth. It has been recreated from 120dpi detailed NASA imagery of the Earth’s surface and each centimetre of the sculpture represents 21km of our planet. The 3D installation rotates once every four minutes, 360 times faster than our real planet and is accompanied by a specially-created composition by BAFTA Award-winning composer Dan Jones.
The installation creates a sense of the Overview Effect, which was first described by author Frank White in 1987. Common features of the experience for astronauts are a feeling of awe for the planet, a profound understanding of the interconnection of all life, and a renewed sense of responsibility for taking care of the environment.
The artwork has been brought to Australia by the Cathedral, as part of its commitment to advocate for greater action to help mitigate a climate emergency.
‘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. Artist
‘Many dream of being able to see the earth from above; to see the iconic blue globe that astronauts have captured for us on film. Now we will be able to share that dream right here in the heart of Melbourne and see the whole earth in our stunning Cathedral.
‘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, Dean of Melbourne,
The exhibition will officially launch on United Nations World Earth Day, April 22, and will be open to the public free of charge during the Cathedral’s normal visiting hours, Monday – Saturday, until June 26.
Full details of opening times and other events taking place can be found on: www.cathedral.org.au/Gaia
Official Opening
The official launch of Gaia will take place on United Nations World Earth Day, April 22, at 4.30pm, featuring a panel event focusing what is next in our fight to mitigate a climate emergency. Panellists will feature experts and thinkers including Aboriginal elder and academic, the Revd Aunty Janet Turpie-Johnstone; internationally recognised climate scientist Professor David Karoly; Walkley award-winning journalist Dr Jeff Sparrow, author of the book Crimes Against Nature: Capitalism and Global Heating; CEO of the Lord Mayor’s Foundation, Dr Catherine Brown OAM, and the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, the Hon. Sally Capp.
Gaia is created in partnership with the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Bluedot and the UK Association for Science and Discovery Centres, with supporting partners Culture Liverpool and Liverpool Cathedral.