The Sculpture Park will take shape within a 1-day visit to the laboratory and involve taking over the gardens, grounds and parts of the building temporarily as sites for a series of sculptural interventions and experiments.

Aiming to be a speculative and unfolding process, the idea of the 1-day Sculpture Park is making reference to aspects of public art, exhibition making and how things translate into external, natural or landscaped environments. The exhibition aims to open up an imaginary space and is working with the limitations of time to experiment with exhibition making, sculpture and the environment. 

All works will appear and disappear within one day. 

UCL Mullard Space Science Laboratory

Opened in 1966 the UCL Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL) is the United Kingdom's largest university space research group. MSSL is the Department of Space and Climate Physics of UCL. The laboratory is situated in a Victorian country house set in 30 acres of parklands with spectacular views across the Surrey and Sussex countryside, and has scientists working together with engineers on projects such as the European Space Agency (ESA) mission Euclid, the Rosetta Comet Mission and other international space research projects in the solar system and beyond.

'The dazzling edge of darkness', the adopted title for the show, is a direct quote from UCL MSSL’s press release for Euclid, a European Space Agency (ESA) mission whose massive optical camera was built by an international team led by UCL researchers releasing its first full-colour images of the cosmos in 2023.

Special guests and collaborators: 

ghost_art_school, a parallel art school and exhibition project led by Rory Macbeth. ghost_art_school artists from Glasgow, Liverpool and Moscow will be taking part remotely and through instructions. 

Nicola Pozzani, fragrance creator and educator, will be leading an olfactory space exploration. He will work with the intangible and emotional qualities of atmosphere in the context of the space science laboratory, exploring ‘darkness’ and space through sensory perception.

A 'Stargazing event' will be facilitated through Guildford Astronomical Society in collaboration with UCL MSSL. Weather depending, at dusk.

Exhibiting artists:

Hyee Jin Bae, Mercedes Balle, Daya Belzer, Madeleine Bender, Bella Bradford, Michael Bradshaw, Hannah Browne, Henry Burns, Natasha Burton, Anna Candlin, Gilles Conan, Jasmir Creed, Jess Crowe, Gwenllian Davenport, Tom Doubtfire, Matthew Duan, Natalya Marconini Falconer, Gary Finnegan and Cos Ahmet, Tobias Gumbrill, Gabriel Kidd, Hansol Kim, Jack Kinsman, Rory Macbeth, Mei To Man, Molly Mousdell, Karema Munassar, Signe Pook, Nicola Pozzani, Yeye Qiu, Ben Qi, Luo Qianxi, Karin Ruggaber, Susie Shiying, Eve Stotesbury, Rex Townrow, Bo Ywen, Rie Ye Zijing.

Funding

This project is part funded through a UCL Arts & Humanities Small Impact Grant.

Links:

• UCL Mullard Space Science Laboratory
• UCL News - Euclid's first images in the dazzling edge of darkness
• ESA - Euclid's first images in the dazzling edge of darkness