In celebration of the 150th anniversary of Jules Verne’s pioneering and prophetic novel “From the Earth to the Moon,” Sheldon Museum of Art will open an exhibition that explores the rich visual history of science fiction.
“The Romance of the Moon: Science Fiction Invades Art” opens May 1 with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. featuring a lunarcore fashion contest, theremin music by Jared Alberico and visits to the UNL Student Observatory from 9 to 11 p.m. to view various objects including Venus, Jupiter and the moon.
Sheldon’s First Friday reception and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Department of Physics and Astronomy’s public night at the Student Observatory are free and open to the public. Both venues are located on the UNL City Campus. Sheldon Museum of Art is at 12th and R streets, and the UNL Student Observatory is on the top floor of the parking garage at 625 Stadium Drive.
The artwork in “The Romance of the Moon” explores several themes commonly found in the genre, including space exploration, environmental crisis, the cosmic uncanny, the relationship between human and machine, close encounters and creative invention. This constellation of interests manifests itself in a variety of media through abstraction, realism, hyperbole and humor.
During the 2015-16 academic year, “The Romance of the Moon” will travel to eight venues across Nebraska as the 29th annual Sheldon Statewide exhibition.
