Helios by Luke Jerram

I took the train to Bath, to the Assembly Rooms to see the ‘Helios’ exhibition in situ in the ballroom. The room was darkened, and lights flickered and twinkled within the 7-metre diameter sculpture suspended from the ceiling. A soundtrack played, and people lay on beanbags or sat on chairs beneath the sculpture. Small children ran around and played. A series of short films were played on a loop in the next room. The ‘sun’ could be viewed in 360 degrees, by walking underneath /around the edge, and the sunspots were different on each aspect. I found the experience very moving, but did not enjoy the music.

Artist Luke Jerram also created a sculpture of the moon, which I saw at Gloucester cathedral in 2018, and since then has created Mars and Gaia. Helios will be touring the Uk and beyond later this year, and there is more than one copy, unlike the Sun as know it.

In other news, I visited the fabulous Persephone bookshop, where I asked for guidance and was directed to Dorothy Whipple, and her book Someone at a Distance. So far, so very good.