Luke Jerram on floating earth, Gaia, coming to Warrington

In reality, there is a much deeper meaning behind why Luke Jerram has created Gaia, also known as floating planet earth which will visit Queens Garden from March 4 – 6.

The breath-taking sculpture is seven metres in diameter.

It accurately depicts the Earth’s surface as it would be viewed from space using detailed NASA imagery.

And the meaning behind it, ironically, is a bit like the sculpture itself. On the face of the earth, you see a planet with seas and continents.

Look deeper and you are met with countries and people with their own lives.

Luke hopes that the artwork can spark conversations around the climate crisis and how everyone can do their bit to help the planet.

Luke pictured with his floating earth

He said: “We are in the middle of a climate crisis and I hope this artwork enables people to have difficult conversations that we all should have about making our society more sustainable.

“The artwork should allow people to almost imagine that they are like astronauts floating above a planet looking down at the earth.

“To see the beauty and the fragility of our planet is really important to realise how precious it is and how fragile it is.

“We are just existing on this outer surface, thin layer. The atmosphere is incredibly thin and very fragile so we do need to change society and make ourselves more sustainable.

“I hope this artwork gives people an appreciation of what we have got to lose.

“It’s great to have it in Warrington. It will be great to bring this artwork to the town and I hope everyone enjoys it.”

Luke calls on everyone to play their part in helping the planet.

'Gaia' in all of its glory

The Bristolian for the last 25 years added: “In this climate crisis, we all have to bring skills that we have to the table.

“If you’re a lawyer, you need to be fighting the cause from a legal perspective and trying to change the law to make society more sustainable.

“If you’re an account, an engineer, a scientist or a shopkeeper, everyone has a part to play towards changing society to have a greener future.

“My job as an artist allows me to help with communication ideas and I work closely with scientists and environmental campaigns as well.

“If we carry on with the business as usual mentality, then we are going to be completely stuffed.

“If everyone does what they can, then we can change society quickly enough to save the planet.”

In Bristol, Luke has noticed how through environmental charities and organisations they are making steps in the right direction for climate change.

Luke continued: “We are really pushing hard here to make our society more sustainable with lots of cycle routes. It seems to be very much on the agenda and it’s an amazing opportunity as we move to a green and more sustainable future.

“We are thinking of it as a positive way forward and we are thinking about it as an opportunity for society, jobs and growth and by moving to a carbon-neutral society, there are lots of opportunities there to take advantage of and it could be great for everybody.”