Thursday, May 29, 2008

Cardboard Planetarium at Sydney Observatory


Solar-powered cardboard planetarium - Sydney Observatory, July '08
Cardboard, pinholes, sunlight, rivets, string. 230cm x 200cm 230cm. Edition 3/6
© Kirsten Bradley 2008

Roll up, roll up, Sydneysiders! In honor of their 150th Anniversary celebrations, Sydney Observatory has commissioned one of my Solar-Powered Cardboard Planetaria as part of the general festivities on Observatory Hill.

A chance to contemplate the night sky of 1858, from the comfort of a Solar-Powered Cardboard Planetarium... in the auspicious surrounds of the Sydney Observatory gardens, atop Observatory Hill. Bring a picnic. Bring your friends. And bring a kid, if you can find, borrow or hire one...

The Observatory grounds will be open from 10am-4pm each day of the June Long Weekend (7th-9th June 2008) and, in addition to the Solar-Powered Cardboard Planetarium, I believe you will be able to view the Sun through filtered telescopes set up on the grounds, see inside bits of the Observatory that you usually cannot, do other stuff and generally take in the gobsmacking view of Sydney harbor, while contemplating the firmament above from your picnic rug and intermittently toasting the universe.

** correction - due to rain being the enemy of cardboard, the Planetarium will now be on show during the Festival of the Stars in July, and thence after, for as long as it lasts **

- More on Solar-Powered Cardboard Planetaria: participatory sculture of the About, above project:

About, above is a project that considers the plausibility of making natural systems out of cardboard. Drawing on our enduring fascination with the night sky and the space beyond, About, above prods the viewer with gentle questions. The project explores ideas regarding our emotive reactions to natural systems, and investigate our relationship with natural pattern- recognition and our capacity for wonder, in the face of disbelief.
Full project overview

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