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 The Voyage exhibition is
a one to 10-billion scale model of the Solar System stretching 2,000
feet (600 meters), and containing ten 8.5 -foot high aluminum
stanchions locating the Sun and nine planets, and three smaller
stanchions that provide entry points to the exhibition, and address
asteroids and comets.
Voyage reflects a seamless fusion of sculpture and science
education, conveying an aesthetic beauty worthy of placement on the
National Mall in Washington, D.C., as required by the approving
bodies—the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, and the National Capital
Planning Commission.
Represented as a striking gold-anodized metal sphere, the Sun—our
star—can be seen by visitors in the exhibition's outer Solar System.
All planets and moons with a diameter greater than 1,000 km [24 worlds]
are depicted to scale as 3-dimensional crystalline spheres
laser-sculpted inside solid glass. The ring systems of the outer
planets are also accurately depicted, including their orientation in
space. |
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Full color imagery, much of which was
commissioned for the exhibition, is found on porcelain enamel
storyboards at each stanchion. Thought-provoking text transports the
visitor by reshaping their Earthly experiences into those reflective of
other worlds.
The imagery and text provide a compelling up-close view of the planets
and moons, in stark contrast to the 3-D models that speak to the
powerful reality of tiny worlds in a vast space. Voyage
transforms visitors into cosmic explorers and turns a leisurely
20-minute walk into a fascinating journey through the Solar System. |
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