The cosmos has been an inspiration to artists throughout the world and over the millennia. Before we had sophisticated artistic tools and more developed understanding of what we were looking at up in the sky, the mysteries of the astronomical world pushed us to experiment creatively.
“Cosmological Map” (c.1400–1521) by unknown; An ancient Mayan depiction of the cosmos, with the fire god Xiuhtecuhlti at its center. T-shaped trees can be seen in each of the four cardinal directions.
There have been songs, books, sculpture, immersive experiences that try to both capture the essence of something we can’t fully understand, and also to transport the viewer through their experience interacting with the work.
It means nothing to me.
Not everyone is as eager about the idea of traveling to the outer edges of our realm of understanding. Inspiration can come from the simplest, most everyday things here on Earth, after all. It is still no less surprising to read Picasso’s response when asked for his reaction to Man’s Landing on the moon.
It means nothing to me. I have no opinion about it, and I don’t care. – Pablo Picasso, July 21, 1969
Since the time for Picasso to travel to the moon has passed, and he would probably have taken a pass on the opportunity anyway, I often wonder which contemporary artists might accept.
If not Picasso, then who?
There are many contemporary artists whose work could be easily envisioned. Below I highlight two whose post-moon voyage work I would love to see. Perhaps after seeing a few examples of their work, you will understand why.
Olafur Eliasson
Visually, his work already evokes the world beyond Earth’s atmosphere. As immersive experiences, there is a sense of transportation from what we know into something strange and otherworldly.
Olafur Eliasson; The Weather Project, 2003; Monofrequency lights, projection foil, haze machines, mirror foil, aluminium, and scaffolding
26.7 m x 22.3 m x 155.4 m; Installation in Turbine Hall, Tate Modern, London; Photo: Studio Olafur Eliasson
Nick Cave
The work of Nick Cave is also evocative of space, but in very different ways. Some soundsuits immediately call to mind an astronaut’s spacesuit (see image above) through their aesthetic similarities. But the concept of the soundsuits themselves mimics the function of a spapcesuit in the way they mediate between the body and the world outside.
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