July 11-14
Ontario Science Centre
Exhibition
African Space Dream animation depicts the Moon landing of an imaginary space ship designed by Milumbe Haimbe, based on the true story about a Zambian science teacher Edward Mukuka Nkoloso, who founded the Zambia National Academy of Space Research In 1964. Nkoloso’s plan was to send a school girl, two cats and a missionary to Mars. His rather unorthodox training methods included placing young astronauts-in-training in big drums and rolling them down a hill or stream to simulate zero-gravity. His space mission failed to lift off, but Nkoloso’s legacy endured in the collective consciousness of Zambians, and so did the socio-political factors that were at play behind Nkoloso’s lofty ambitions.
This project was produced as part of Idea Projects, Ontario Science Centre’s partnership with the Museum of Contemporary Art Toronto. Idea Projects provides studio residencies to artists exploring science and technology through art. Uniting two forms of inquiry reveals the potential for scientific and artistic collaborations to reimagine the global landscape.