The moon comes to Kolkata

This weekend, Kolkatans watched a spectacle like no other at the north gate of Victoria Memorial. Set against the backdrop of the iconic structure, there sat a huge replica of the moon that looked as close to the real thing as possible, leaving the hundreds who witnessed the 23-foot 3D installation by British artist Luke Jerram in awe of it.
What is it all about?
Seven metres in diameter, the installation was created using several detailed NASA satellite images of the moon’s surface.“The idea of creating a moon installation occurred to Luke about 20 years ago. But couldn’t, as no detailed photograph of the whole lunar surface was available back then,” said Jennifer Crook, a British Council official.
In 2009-10, imageries collected by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera finally helped him create the Museum of Moon,” informed Jennifer Crook, an official from British Council India that brought the installation in the city to mark its 70th year in India. At an approximate scale of 1:5,00,000, each centimetre of the internally lit spherical sculpture represents five km of the moon’s surface. The 21-metre-wide high resolution image used to make the artwork was created by the Astrogeology Science Centre in the US.
The soundscape
The moon artwork is accompanied by a sound installation by BAFTA-winning British composer, Dan Jones. In 2011, Dan won BAFTA in Television Music category for British miniseries Any Human Heart.Shibaprasad Bhowmik, a medical student and a vocalist, who was present there to witness the installation, said, “We usually gaze at the moon in the time of solitude. The soundscape of the exhibition reflects that solitude amidst the hustle and bustle of the lawn here. We have always tried to reach the moon through art, poetry — even astronomic expeditions. This is for the first time that the moon has come to meet us.”
Celestial influence on art
Speaking about the installation, Luke said, “For eons, the moon has impacted our society and culture. It has inspired artists, poets, scientists, writers and musicians all over the world. Before gas lamps and electricity were introduced to us, the moon was the only night-time source of light. It is a vital source for navigation too. Living in cities illuminated by electricity, we have in many ways become disconnected to the moon. I hope this project restores that sense of wonder, inspires questions and reconnects people with the night sky.”
Well, it indeed inspired awe among the city audience. “It was a lifetime experience for all of us. We listen to Chanda re chanda re, Kabhi to zameen par aa, and then suddenly, it is there, right in front of you. It is unbelievable,” said musician Soumyojit Das, adding, “Also, we, the citizen of Kolkata, will remember that in February 2018, we had three consecutive full moon nights without a break of a new moon, as February 17, the day the installation was inaugurated at Victoria lawn, was actually the new moon night.”
Soumyojit’s fellow musician friend, Sourendro Mullick, said, “Whether it was Ludwig van Beethoven, William Wordsworth, Rabindranath Tagore or Vincent van Gogh — all the great artists had celestial inspiration in their artworks. For us, it has always been very difficult to choose what to take and what to discard. Luke’s moon made our life easier. After a while, we all started to believe that we are indeed sitting right next to the real moon.”
On its way to Delhi
But how does the moon travel without any fixed orbit? “It is deflated and packed into a metre-cube box. Then it is either flown or cargoed via train. The moon travels and we follow. From Bangalore, where it was first installed at NGMA, the moon travelled to Mumbai and Udaipur before coming down to Kolkata. Now, it is on its way to Delhi. The venue, however, is still a surprise,” Jennifer signed off.