Museum of the Moon is a touring artwork by UK artist Luke Jerram.

Measuring seven metres in diameter, the moon features 120dpi detailed NASA imagery of the lunar surface. At an approximate scale of 1:500,000, each centimetre of the internally lit spherical sculpture represents 5km of the moon’s surface*.

Over its lifetime, the Museum of the Moon will be presented in a number of different ways both indoors and outdoors, so altering the experience and interpretation of the artwork. As it travels from place to place, it will gather new musical compositions and an ongoing collection of personal responses, stories and mythologies, as well as highlighting the latest moon science.

The installation is a fusion of lunar imagery, moonlight and surround sound composition created by BAFTA and Ivor Novello award winning composer Dan Jones. Each venue also programmes their own series lunar inspired events beneath the moon.

The moon has always inspired humanity, acting as a ‘cultural mirror’ to society, reflecting the ideas
and beliefs of all people around the world. Over the centuries, the moon has been interpreted as a god and as a planet. It has been used as a timekeeper, calendar and been a source of light to aid nighttime navigation. Throughout history the moon has inspired artists, poets, scientists, writers and musicians the world over. The ethereal blue light cast by a full moon, the delicate crescent following the setting sun, or the mysterious dark side of the moon has evoked passion and exploration. Different cultures around the world have their own historical, cultural, scientific and religious relationships to the moon. And yet somehow, despite these differences, the moon connects us all.

Museum of the Moon allows us to observe and contemplate cultural similarities and differences around the world,  and consider the latest moon science. Depending on where the artwork is presented, its meaning and interpretation will shift. Read more in Research. Through local research at each location of the artwork, new stories and meanings will be collected and compared from one presentation to the next.

#MuseumofTheMoon

Each venue to present the artwork can programme their own series lunar inspired events beneath the moon. Below are a selection of events that that have taken place so far…

Museum of the Moon has been co-commissioned by a number of creative organisations brought together by Luke Jerram and Norfolk & Norwich Festival. These include: Greenwich+Docklands International Festival, Brighton Festival, Without Walls, Cork Midsummer Festival, We The Curious, Lakes Alive, Provincial Domain Dommelhof, Les Tombées de la Nuit, Rennes  and Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. The artwork has been created in partnership with the UK Space Agency, University of Bristol and The Association for Science and Discovery Centres. For more information see Partners.

Luke Jerram’s multidisciplinary practice involves the creation of sculptures, installations and live arts projects. Living in the UK but working internationally for 21 years, Jerram has created a number of extraordinary art projects which have excited and inspired people around the globe. Find out more through his main website https://www.lukejerram.com/.

The Museum of the Moon was inspired by living in Bristol and noticing the huge tidal variation as he cycled over the Avon Cut each day. His moon research also led to his artwork Tide.

*The massive 21meter wide, high resolution image used to create the moon artwork, was created by the Astrogeology Science Centre in the USA. The imagery was taken by a NASA satellite carrying the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera launched in 2010.

Over the coming years Museum of the Moon will be presented in art exhibitions, science, music and light festivals around the world. As the artwork tours, new audio compositions will be created and performed by a range of established composers and musicians, so adding to the Museum of the Moon collection.

The Houston Museum of Natural Sciences, USA, opens 21st April onwards
Lille3000, France, 27 April – 8 September
Draper, Boston, USA, 18 May – 6 October
Natural History Museum, London, 17 May 2019 – 1 January 2020.
ArtScience Museum, Singapore, 25 May – 29 September
Milanosport, Italy, 15 – 23 June
Silbersalz Festival, Germany, 20 – 23 June
Dorset Moon, UK, 28 – 30 June; 5 – 6 July; 12 – 14 July
Festival Viva Cité, France, 28 – 30 June
Harrogate International Festivals, UK, 5 – 14 July
Rhode Island, USA, 8 – 29 July
Birmingham, UK, 12 – 14 July
Bluedot, UK, 18 – 21 July
Dorchester, UK, 19 – 21 July
Armagh, Northern Ireland, 20 July
Wulong Art Festival, China, 3 August – 3 November.
Milwaukee, USA, 9 – 11 August
Wakefield, UK, 24 August – 8 September
Derby Cathedral, UK, 16 September – 6 October
UK Space Conference, UK, 24 – 26 September
Warrington Contemporary Arts Festival, UK, 4 – 14 October
New Scientist Live, London, UK, 10 – 13 October
Strike a Light Festival, Gloucester Cathedral, UK, 16 October – 4 November
Ironbridge Gorge Museum, UK, 21 October – 10 November
The Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, USA, 1 December – 5 January

(There are several moons touring simultaneously)

Presented previously in:

2019

Bell Museum, Minnesota, USA, Ely Cathedral Science Festival, UK,  Napa Lighted Festival, USA. Light Night, Nottingham,UK. Burns & Beyond, Edinburgh, Scotland. Harpa Reykjavík, Iceland. Harris Museum & Art Gallery, UK. Suffolk Science Festival,UK,  Limerick, Ireland. BLIK BLIK Festival, Czech Republic. Futura Genoa, Italy. Joondalup Festival, Australia. Feriye, Turkey. Scienceworks, Australia. The Collection Museum, Lincoln, UK. Life Science Centre, UK. Ingelheim, Germany. Florence, USA. Brighton, UK. Big Bang Festival, France. Warsaw, Poland.

Source from：https://my-moon.org/