Navigating the Sky explores the sensory and scientific relationship between Earth's atmosphere and the atmospheres of exoplanets. This exhibition, featuring contributions from art, climate, and space research, highlights the diverse and changing celestial environments. As we discover more exoplanets with unique atmospheres and weather phenomena, we also recognize that our own planet's atmosphere is being altered by climate change.
Artists Azra Akšamija and Dietmar Offenhuber collaborate to explore how ideas and knowledge shape our understanding of the sky. Their animation combines two different knowledge systems: Polynesian non-instrumental navigation and scientific observation. The first part, Manu-o-Kū, draws on the wisdom of Polynesian navigator Nainoa Thompson, who describes the interconnectedness of stars, clouds, waves, and living beings. This celestial knowledge, shared with animals like the seabird Manu-o-Kū, offers a unique perspective on orientation and land proximity.
The second part, SIMBAD, examines how scientific knowledge is influenced by instruments and human culture. SIMBAD, an astronomical database, maps celestial objects to their corresponding positions in the sky. The composite image reveals geometric patterns shaped by instruments, publication formats, and cultural interests. The sounds and visuals in this section are generated from millions of bibliographic references extracted from the database. The project showcases the fragile balance of life and the atmosphere on Earth while exploring different ways of perceiving and understanding the celestial environment.
Co-authored with Dietmar Offenhuber
Concept and Artistic Direction: Azra Akšamija and Dietmar Offenhuber
Research and project development assistance: Merve Akdoğan, Jehanzeb Shoaib
AI animation: Merve Akdoğan (using Stable Diffusion and Deforum)
Data visualization and sonification: Dietmar Offenhuber
Voices: Nainoa Thompson, Polynesian Voyaging Society
Data from SIMBAD Astronomical Database, Centre de Donn.es astronomiques de Strasbourg
Thanks to: Hōkūleʻa Polynesian Voyaging Society; Thomas Boch, Universit. de Strasbourg, Prof. Alyssa Goodman, Peter Williams, Alberto Pepe – Harvard University
Animation
The 4 min room-sized animation was commissioned for the traveling exhibition Atmospheres: Art, Science, and Space Research, within the Austrian state exhibition Diversity of Life: Showing Styria 2023; on view from March 23 - April 4 at the Mobile Pavilion at the Heldenplatz, Vienna, and from April 29 - May 11 at the Tierwelt Herberstein in Austria.
Medium: video