Irish Artists Gillian Fitzpatrick and Justin Donnelly in ‘The Moon Gallery’, the First Outer Space Art Gallery

The Moon Gallery is an international, collaborative art installation housing the seeds of a future, shared interplanetary culture. In collaboration with Nanoracks , powered by Voyager Space , the test payload of 64 artifacts, each no bigger than one cubic centimeter, is targeting launch aboard the NG-17 Cygnus resupply mission on February 19, 2022. The gallery is represented by artists from Asia, Europe, North America, South America, and Africa.

Irish artists Gillian Fitzpatrick and Justin Donnelly will have works on-board.

From The Moon Gallery:

“While it is hoped that the gallery will spark conversation and bring joy to the astronauts aboard the space station, its mission also has a scientific purpose. The Moon Gallery will be installed inside a Nanoracks Nanolab, serving as moving targets for camera observations and performance tests. The gallery offers a diverse range of materials and behaviours for the camera to detect, and in return, the artists will get a chance to learn about the performance of their artworks in microgravity.

“The Moon Gallery Foundation is a nonprofit cultural organization based in the Netherlands and founded in 2020 by Anna Sitnikova, Elizaveta Glukhova, Bernard Foing, and Charlotte ten Holder. The foundation provides a platform for interdisciplinary and international cooperation and knowledge exchange between the creative/artistic sector and the space/technology sector.”

The launch will occur on Saturday, 19 February.