Sunday 27 March 2022

Gaia

We saw that another exhibition by Luke Jerram (the creator of The Museum of the Moon) was on at our local Museum, so on Thursday, we headed off and were among the first in there.  
It is a very similar concept to The Moon, with a large sphere which is lit from inside.  Despite the room not really being big enough (in my opinion), it still looked very impressive.
The Earth slowly rotates and is accompanied by a soundtrack of people talking about the Earth and how we should be taking better care of it and some specially composed music.
It was the closest we'll ever get to seeing it like this. 
You can see why it is called The Blue Planet.
This made me realise how limited my geographical knowledge is - I had never really thought about how big Africa is; I hadn't appreciated how close Russia and America are and I hadn't really thought about how high up the UK is.  Seeing it as a spherical shape made me appreciate these things much more.
It is a very thought-provoking exhibition.  Our insignificance is certainly one thing which came into my head.
I also hadn't realised that we have only been able to view the Earth like this since 1972. 

It is a touring exhibition so it may travel to somewhere near you.  A link to the site is here.   It is well worth a visit.
 

12 comments:

  1. What a fabulous exhibition to see. If ever it travels this far I will certainly go to see it. Many thanks. And yes, my geographical knowledge is also scanty.

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    1. Thanks, EC. It is a good complementary piece to the Moon. I am hoping that it may come back to the Cathedral in a year or two, like the Moon did. It would look wonderful in there. Geography was never one of my strong points and it certainly showed!
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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  2. Woot Woot, I'm the first to comment. Looks like an amazing exhibit. I wish Russia and the US weren't so close.
    Sandy's Space

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    1. Thanks, Sandy and congrats on being the first comment! It was very thought-provoking and quite mesmeric to watch as it slowly revolved.
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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  3. Wow, that looks amazing Ellie! I can imagine how mesmerising it must be. I remember the moon one you posted. Now that must be hard to transport :0 xXx

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    1. Thanks, Lulu. Chris and I were discussing the Moon and the Earth and decided they must be inflatable in some way - to help with transportation! Both were indeed mesmerising - just sitting there with them was a memorable experience.
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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  4. Wow, this looks amazing. Than you so much for sharing this, I am going to see if this is coming near to me, I do hope so but I suspect not! My geographical has improved home educating my children and watching documentaries about different countries which always had us pouring over maps after viewing. Alaska used to belong to Russia once upon a time and the two countries had a land bridge like we used to have with Europe when sea levels were lower. It is thought that animals and people crossed it from Asia. Wonderful post, thank you.

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    1. Thanks, sustainablemum. I hope this comes to somewhere near you - fingers crossed. That info about the land bridge is very interesting and makes sense when you see how close some countries are to each other. It also makes sense when thinking about art in cultures and how things 'cross pollinate'.
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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  5. What an interesting exhibition, never paid much attention in geography at school, just had to keep your head down from the flying chalk. I´m sure as we get older we have more interest in these things xcx

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    1. Thanks, Chrissie. I agree - these things do become more interesting, particularly once we realise our time here is not infinite!
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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  6. That looks so interesting and especially for young spectators.We so need to learn more about our wonderful planet and how we have to take care of it.I think we need even more exhibitions like this especially about far away places that we will quite possibly never visit. All the knowledge about other cultures and how they live is so important. Children/People need to look/think outside of the box and understand other races;gain new perspectives and hence less racial discrimination. Keep well. Amanda x

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    1. Thanks, Amanda. You make some very good and important points there, which I totally agree with.
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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