Illuminating the cosmos: ANU students light up Mount Stromlo

Darkness is falling over Mount Stromlo and astrophysicist Dr Brad Tucker is bathed in a celestial glow. 

Students from the ANU School of Art and Design are projecting their work onto the historic telescopes at Mount Stromlo Observatory as part of this year’s Enlighten Festival.  

The cohort, made up of second and third-year students, has pushed the boundaries of digital and experimental media, using animation, soundscapes, video and mixed media techniques.

Tucker, an associate professor at the ANU Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics, is no stranger to using the telescopes to explore the farthest reaches of the universe, but tonight he is here to see the way which art – like science – pushes the limits of human imagination.  

“These pieces have been not just inspiring, but really moving, almost striking a nerve,” Tucker says.  

“[They] really capture the essence of the stories of us, of the stories of scientists and astronomers and people who have worked up here, in a very moving, and impactful way… how we’ve experienced the change of Canberra, having experienced the bushfires up here.” 

Light, land and sky

Guided by Senior Lecturer Anna Madeleine Raupach, a renowned multidisciplinary artist, and Head of Photography and Media Arts, Associate Professor Katrina Sluis, the students spent four weeks creating their works.  

Areas explored in the projections include the effects of climate change, the fabric of the galaxy and the human relationship with the cosmos. 

Kalo Subakti was inspired by the resilience of the Australian landscape.  

Their work The Road uses bright, red lights and reflective signs to tell a story of colonisation, bushfires and what it means for a landmark to change while still showing visible traces of its past. 

“Because I am doing a double degree in science, I’ve really enjoyed having the opportunity, to be up here, especially because I don’t get to visit this site at the ANU at all,” says Subakti.   

“Being able to incorporate the science of the site, and especially the nature of the Australian, flora, with bushfires consistently burning down our forests and then coming back greener than ever – and being able to include that as an aspect of my art has been quite amazing.” 

Exploring time and place

Zoe Cuthbert chose to use stop-motion animation in her projection This Place Through Time. In her work, she explores what the space of the Mt Stromlo Observatory looked like as recently 10 years ago and as far back as 13.8 billion years ago. 

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“I knew that it was a public art display, and that it was going to be viewed by people who knew about the site and Enlighten, but also a lot of people who maybe didn’t know so much about it and a lot of kids and families,” says Cuthbert.  

“Whilst it’s not super accurate to the science, I hope that it kind of gives that idea of how unimaginable it is.” 

Cuthbert had to meticulously arrange a thousand frames to create her stop-motion, carefully placing pieces of paper down, moving them incrementally, and taking a photo at each step to bring the sequence to life. 

She says it was important to her that the work was delivered with humour. 

“I just wanted it to be something that everyone could kind of see and smile and enjoy, even with no context.”