A Journey to Space

Viaggio nel Cosmo

Journey through the Cosmos takes visitors on a discovery tour of the Universe, to the real place as well as to the realm of fantasy. Organized by the Hermann Geiger Cultural Foundation, the exhibition outlines the history of astronomy through the display of scientific instruments and ancient sky maps, as well as literary, cinematic, and artistic works inspired by the observation of space long before man could actually reach it. The final section of the exhibition deals with the physical conquest of the frontiers of the cosmos, showing how reality can sometimes meet and exceed the expectations of imagination.

From time immemorial, humans have been looking to the sky in search of answers: signs of the benevolence of the gods, the right path to distant lands, clues about their origins, and the structure on which the creation is based. Space has been a metaphysical concept, a religious mystery, and the goal of the striving of man whose discoveries and conquests have surpassed human imagination. The exhibition Journey through the Cosmos aims to illustrate the full extent of this effort and the depth of the relationship between man and the heavenly vault.

With a seventeenth-century telescope to observe the stars, a real space suit, the showing of the film Le voyage dans la Lune by Georges Méliès, and a copy of Jules Verne’s novel De la Terre à la Lune autographed by eighteen astronauts, the underlying theme of the exhibition is the link between the history of science and that of our collective imagination about space. Visitors will be guided through carefully selected documentary materials as well as rare and valuable objects, leading them to the latest astronomical discoveries.

In cooperation with renowned institutions in the field of science, such the European Gravitational Observatory of the Italian National Institute for Nuclear Physics and the Arcetri Observatory, as well as of science fiction – the Turin Science Fiction Museum MUFANT or the Swiss Maison d’Ailleurs in Yverdon-les-Bains –, the Geiger Foundation has overseen the full design and staging of its 25th exhibition. This includes explanatory panels and videos, projection areas as well as captivating installations.

The Geiger Foundation also published an illustrated catalogue, which describes the exhibits in detail and contains compelling scientific essays. The exhibition programme also includes a series of events, including conferences and meetings on the latest scientific discoveries, film screenings and guided visits to the Punta Falcone Astronomical Observatory (Piombino).

Journey through the Cosmos
3 December 2016 – 19 February 2017
Hermann Geiger Cultural Foundation
Piazza Guerrazzi 32, Cecina (LI)
Open daily from 4 to 8 pm. Free admission
Opening: 3 December, 5 pm
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