2021.4 Fluid Expressions

Fluid Expressions incorporates science, art, and design into an exploration of art-making and place-making in outer space. The exhibition takes the form of a work of online speculative fiction centered around the design and craft of an object called a memory capsule.

The exhibition describes the journey of a painter as they prepare to travel to low Earth orbit as Earth’s first space-artist-in-residence. Their goal is to capture the experience of microgravity as they free-fall toward and around Earth at nearly 5 miles a second. They are allowed a limited set of tools to carry with them to space, including a memory capsule that will act as canvas, easel, and containment for the occasion. They have crafted this object themselves from materials intended for use in space, but that also remind them of their ties to Earth and to home. The narrative catalogs the journey they have taken, with asides on the unintuitive nature of movement and perception in microgravity and the design process of the memory capsule woven throughout.

This exhibition aims to explore the relationship between place and the art we create, how we see our homes from afar, and what inspires us about journeying into new regions that challenge and evolve our perceptions. However, the speculative nature of this work is grounded in real obstacles and opportunities afforded by travel off-planet, offering a hypothetical near-term future in which artists are among those who travel to and record our experiences of outer space.

This work was made possible by the MIT Space Exploration Initiative. Through their support, this project is scheduled to fly on a parabolic flight in May 2021, in order to perform with the memory capsule during periods of weightlessness. This zero-g performance provides an invaluable opportunity to bridge the gap between speculative design and its intended environment, allowing for future iteration and development of this work.

Visit the exhibition website at — https://fluid-expressions.glitch.me.

Sana Sharma

Sana Sharma is a designer and creative technologist working at the intersection of art, science, and emerging technologies. Her designs highlight the human element in science + technology, from human health and AI to quantum computing and outer space. She has developed experiences for organizations including the MIT Space Exploration Initiative, IBM Research, and the Broad Institute at Harvard and MIT. Sana is currently an MDes Technology ’21 candidate at Harvard GSD, and received her Bachelor of Arts in Architecture at Yale University. To learn more, please visit www.sanasharma.com.