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Cycles of Spheres:
Mapping the Planets in Silk and SoundA National Touring Exhibition in 2001 - 2003
Exhibition Overview
Cycles of Spheres, a comprehensive exhibit, offers a unique sculptural approach to our corner of the universe: the solar system. Large-scale silk batiks of the planets are arranged around a central light source which represents our sun. As if frozen in time, each silk tableau provides a visual window to an individual planet's identity and personality. Monotype prints on paper further extend the interpretation of earthly phenomena. Music heard at listening stations enhances the exhibit, evoking the majesty of our nine planetary worlds.
Venturing beyond the present explorations of today's spacecraft probes, artist Mary Edna Fraser and composer Mark Mercury bring the geology of planets to a wider audience. By humanizing space through imagery and sound, emotional and aesthetic reactions connect us with Earth and distant planetscapes in a way that science alone cannot.
The pioneering work of contemporary American artist, Mary Edna Fraser, has been collected and exhibited worldwide. In 1994-95 she was the first woman to be honored with a solo exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC. She has completed numerous public commissions for such venues as the American Embassy in Thailand, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the New England Aquarium. Working in the ancient textile medium of batik, Fraser utilizes modern dye technology with aerial and satellite photography, integrating images of Earth into silk. She often combines many at a time into sculptural installations. Through the use of the most modern telescopic images, such as those from the Hubble Space Telescope, this new series of batiks of our solar system represents a natural development of this theme.
Composer Mark Mercury's music is a blend of contemporary classical and futuristic electronic, in which traditional orchestral timbres are fused with newly-created, synthesized sounds. Noted for an inventive and dramatic style, Mercury's composing has been heard around the globe. He has released several albums, including "The Art of Space" and "Music of the Domes." Also to his credit are numerous soundtracks for film, television, animation, and high-tech multimedia planetariums, including "And A Star To Steer Her By," "The New Solar System," "Universe of Illusions," and "Exploring New Worlds" for the National Air and Space Museum's Albert Einstein Planetarium.
This collaboration between two forward-thinking artists portrays perspectives that the human eye and ordinary cameras alone cannot reveal. Presenting a series of images based on the surface patterns of the planets underscored with sonic impressions of these exotic spheres is unique. Fraser's mastery of the ancient art of batik coupled with Mercury's futuristic music lead exhibit visitors into an imaginative mapping of the skies of the 21st century. Viewers leave more connected to planet Earth and our companion planets, having gained new insights into our place in the universe.
Cycles of Spheres is curated by Anne Collins, a Guggenheim Fellow with the National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution, who specializes in the relationship of art to science and technology. It is archived on CD-ROM by electronic imagist Gregory K.H. Bryant who has collaborated with Fraser on projects since 1995. A CD-ROM station and listening station with headphones are additional components of Cycles of Spheres.
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