Solar system stars in creative interplay of art and science

Artist Michael Benson’s Otherworlds: Visions of our Solar System features 64 photographic images of our corner of the universe based on scientific data collected by robotic spacecraft.

Museum chief executive Suzanne Miller said the artist had blurred the worlds of art and science by using his skills to transform the data into images.

“This visually stunning exhibition is a showcase of planets that most of us can only dream of visiting,” she said.

“Through Michael Benson’s images, they can navigate the solar system from the comfort of the museum.”

Data used for the exhibition was collected from the digital archives of NASA and the European Space Agency. Images are based on data from 1967 to as recently as 2015. Composer Brian Eno, no stranger to ethereal sounds, contributed ambient music to complement them.

Benson said he was excited to have been able to open the solar system to human eyes. “The exhibition makes clear that the visual legacy of five decades of planetary exploration constitutes an important chapter in the history of visual representation,’’ he said.

The exhibition runs until July 2.