★★★★✰
Luke Jerram’s Museum of the Moon made its debut appearance in 2016 at the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta. Since then, the work has been seen across the globe. From swimming pools in Coventry and Beijing to the busy streets of Hong Kong and Mumbai, the giant inflatable has fascinated and enthralled millions of visitors.
Its latest appearance sees it land in Greenwich, suspended in the Royal Naval College’s Painted Hall. This location has its own ties to the moon: the Baroque ceiling, starring lunar figures from across the ages, from Galileo and Copernicus to the goddess Diana, makes it a fitting space to host the exhibition. The juxtaposition between the warm, dark colours of the Painted Hall and the cold brightness of the moon somehow work together, neither outshowing the other. There is something undeniably theatrical about Museum of the Moon, the music that accompanies it at intervals making it a multisensory experience rather than a static exhibition.
Jerram was inspired by the draw of the moon as he cycled along Bristol’s Avon Cut, noting the tidal variations from day to day. That fascination with the moon and its enchanting appeal is replicated in the Museum, with the gentle luminosity and slight surrealism of the exhibition’s setting pulling visitors in. People stand scattered around the cavernous Painted Hall, all looking up, transfixed, at the giant balloon that dominates the already imposing space.
The moon is framed by dark scaffolding and suspended by functionally invisible threads that truly succeed in creating the illusion that it is free-floating. As the balloon is gently buffered by the breeze, it is easy to see it as an organic shape—a miracle mini-moon that has been caught in Greenwich.
The artwork is most impactful from a distance. Up close, the lines of the balloon’s panels are more visible, the artifice more apparent. But as you first enter the hall, it is hard not to be struck by the piece’s beauty and impact. For this moment alone, the exhibition is worth a visit. However stunning the photos of this moon are, they pale in comparison to standing in front of it in person.
The attention to detail makes the piece somewhat hypnotic. Knowing that each centimetre represents five kilometres of the real moon is almost overwhelming at times, the 1:500,000 scale replica only highlighting just how large the little white dot in the sky really is.
Humans have always been fascinated with the moon, creating mythologies around it, admiring it and worshipping it since time began. The Museum feels like another form of this, with each location that it graces putting on a series of events to celebrate its visit. At the Royal Naval College, these include a ‘moon party’, yoga sessions and a Lunar New Year celebration. Other venues have hosted synchronised swimming displays, live music performances and aerial hoop acrobatics.
Jerram intends that each showing of the Museum will garner a different experience, each location prompting a different audience response. Its status as a ‘museum’ is earned through the musical compositions that follow it, the impacts it has on each person who sees it. The longer that the piece exists and the growing number of locations it visits, the more lives it touches. Each person’s experience with Museum of the Moon will be different, and although this isn’t something that can be seen it can certainly be felt; the exhibition is a group experience, shared across time and space.
Even if you’ve seen the piece before, it’s worth making the trip to see it when it lights up a room (or street, or lake) near you.
Words by Lucy Carter
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