GAIA exhibit brings new perspective to 'Mother Earth'
When you walk inside Trivitt Memorial Church in Exeter, Ont., it’s hard not to be taken aback by the sheer size and scale of the Earth, unlike what many people have ever seen.
“You walk in the front door, and you’re just sort of greeted with the biggest interpretation of Earth, I think, I’ve ever seen. It’s bigger than a cinema screen or projection, and I really appreciated it. The kids walked in and had that ‘A-ha!’ moment. They were blown away,” said Darryn de Souza, who brought his homeschool class from Perth County to see GAIA.
Measuring 20 feet wide and six metres in diameter, this version of Earth is suspended from the ceiling of Trivitt Memorial Church, spinning to the sounds the astronauts aboard the spacecraft that took the pictures that made this display possible.
“Generally, people say ‘Look at how much water there is. Look how far north Canada is. Look at the size of Africa, as a continent’,” said the man who helped bring the GAIA exhibit to Exeter, John Miller.
GAIA, named after the Greek Goddess of Earth, mother of all life, is the centrepiece of the Huron Waves Music Festival this summer. Eight concerts, inspired by GAIA, take place between now and July 3rd. That’s when the inflated balloon leaves Exeter.
GAIA exhibit in Exeter, Ont., is on display until July 3, 2023. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)
“Our theme is, Our Earth, My Responsibility, and we’ve asked all the composers and musicians who are making programs for us if they would interpret the theme, if they would interpret GAIA, through their music and words,” said Miller, who is the executive director of the Huron Waves Music Festival.
Even without the music accompaniment Thursday, the kids who visited absolutely loved seeing Earth like they’ve never seen it before.
“I like the designs in the clouds, how it’s like swirly with the blue water,” said one of the students.
“I like that I could lie down underneath it,” said another young visitor.
“I think it’s amazing. I think it’s cool to walk in and see something so big. They’ve never fathomed [how] Earth can look,” said de Souza.
You learn more about the GAIA exhibit and its place in the Huron Waves Music Festival by following this link.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.