Destination Earth

October 11 – 19 2025

Destination Earth is a multi-sensory, interactive art installation that reveals the vital connections between ocean, atmosphere, and human activity in the era of climate change, spotlighting the pulse and flows of the Southern Ocean and the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.

Overview

Led by artist and dancer Salome Bazin, with input from scientists at the Antarctic Research Centre, Destination Earth rises in a 4m tall digital monolith and immersive soundscape in Tākina Wellington’s Tangaroa Foyer. From satellite data to real-time generative music and motion tracking capturing visitors’ movements, the artwork plunges audiences into an immersive embodied experience of flow. Visitors are invited to dive into the Southern Ocean and explore the pulse of the Antarctic circumpolar current as Destination Earth reveals the vital connections between ocean, atmosphere, and human activity. Each step visitors take in the space, every movement of their bodies, has an impact on the ocean portal: rising tension or soothing currents, giving life to a melody unique to each collective performance.

Destination Earth opens with live performance activations by Atamira Dance Company on Saturday, 11 October, inviting everyone to physically engage with ocean flows, and to reflect on our place within the natural cycles that sustain life. Destination Earth gives us a way to see, to hear, to feel the ocean’s life as it moves through us, giving hope to the potential of symbiotic living with the earth. The exhibition is free and open daily during Tākina opening hours, 7am–5pm.

Artistic and Scientific Collaboration

Salome Bazin: Art director, movement creator, and founder of Cellule Studio, known for blending performance with digital art.
James Renwick: Climate scientist contributing Antarctic and oceanic research expertise.
Rob M Thomas: Composer who crafts generative, interactive soundscapes unique to each visitor.
Sebastiano Barbieri: Creative technologist integrating data, motion, and digital artwork.
Atamira Dance Company: Guest dancers for live performance activations.
The Grid Art Space: Aotearoa New Zealand presenter and collaborator.
Supported by the British Council New Zealand and the Pacific through their Connections Through Culture grant programme, the British High Commission Wellington, the Antarctic Science Platform, and Copernicus Marine Service. Project initially supported by STARTS.

Immersive and Cultural Experience

The exhibition places visitors at the center of a poetic, data-driven installation, surrounded by music, movement, and digital ocean flows. Through live activations, the performance evokes the ancient rhythms of whale songs, phytoplankton blooms, and the oxygen-rich breath of ocean tides. Audience behavior—whether fast or slow—actively alters the digital environment, simulating the tension or relief our collective actions exert upon the sea.