Sunlight/Starlight I Louisiana Art & Science Museum

In honor of the International Year of Light, this exhibition provided a glimpse into the aesthetic, scientific and spiritual dimensions with which we regard the Sun. A twinkling orb measuring 12-feet in diameter and weighing 400 lbs. hung down from the former train station’s second floor ceiling. Named Solar Flare, the installation by Caitlin R. C. Brown and Wayne Garrett of Calgary was designed to simulate the golden hour during Canada’s darkest winter days. Also on view were: paintings by Jonathan Feldschuh (New York); a documentary from Traveling SUN by Istad/Pacini ArtLab (Oslo, Norway); a video by Eva Lee (CT); and digital works and an installation by Penelope Umbrico (New York). In LASM’s Irene W. Pennington Planetarium, visitors could learn more about the real Sun.

Additionally, a revolutionary art video produced by NASA’s Solar Dynamic Observatory depicted actual solar flares on the surface of the Sun. Named Solarium, the video footage was presented as an immersive environment, complete with an audio track created at Stanford University from solar data measuring the way sound waves travel through the center of the Sun.

The Sun’s nighttime companion, the Moon, was featured in the exhibition’s last gallery.  Within a darkened space loomed a large-format video of the moon by Taro Shinoda (Tokyo, Japan) named LRTT (Lunar Reflection Transmission Technique) and a telescope he created himself.