The Infinite Look: A History of Gazing Skyward

Transcription of audio description at Exhibition entry

This audio guide to The Infinite Look: A History of Gazing Skyward features four stops with information about the exhibition themes and descriptions of select displays. You can access this guide on the UNSW Library exhibition page or by scanning the QR codes using your own device or smartphone in the space. If you find my pronunciation to be off at times, it is because I am AI generated and am still learning. This is stop one, the exhibition introduction.

Welcome to the exhibition The Infinite Look: A History of Gazing Skyward. The exhibition dates are 13 April to 30 October 2026, in the Level 5 exhibition space of UNSW Main Library. The room contains two adjoining walls with a large, monochromatic graphic of a cratered moon surface featuring the exhibition title in shiny, black acrylic letters. To the right, the matte black wall displays a detailed white text panel alongside a decorative cluster of small, reflective star motifs. Cantered against this black wall is a rectangular display case that contains open books, documents, and meteorite samples.

The wall text reads: The Infinite Look: A History of Gazing Skyward examines humanity’s long relationship with the cosmos through the tools built to study it and the layers of cultural heritage beneath it. The exhibition traces the development of astronomical instruments, from ancient stone observatories used to track lunar and solar pathways to the recently launched James Webb Space Telescope. It considers how each technological shift opens new ways of looking skyward, expanding our perception into deeper realms. The Infinite Look also includes many cultural traditions across time and place that interpret celestial bodies and constellations, revealing how people find orientation, knowledge, and meaning in the sky. Together, these scientific and cultural perspectives remind us that the night sky holds a living history of human observation and imagination. 

Curated by UNSW Library and developed in collaboration with the School of Physics and School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences (BEES), The Infinite Look draws on UNSW research and materials from the University’s cultural collections, including UNSW Archives, UNSW Art Collection, the Library’s Special Collections, Faculty of Engineering’s Surveying Instrument Museum, and mineral and rock samples from BEES. The contemporary art and immersive landscapes featured in the show invite reflection on the scientific advancements and rich traditions of cultural storytelling mapped onto the stars.  

We acknowledge First Nations Elders past and present, celebrating their enduring connection to the stars. We recognise Sky Country as a vital extension of land and sea, a map of knowledge, spirituality, and science shaping the oldest living culture on Earth. UNSW Library stands on the unceded lands of the Bedegal and Gadigal peoples.

Transcript of audio description at Gallery 1

This is the second stop in the audio guide for The Infinite Look. This stop covers two displays in the exhibition about the development of telescopes and the planet Mars. The left display features a dark gallery wall with seven framed images and diagrams of telescopes—ranging from historical illustrations to modern satellite photographs—arranged in two rows above a central display case. A small, detailed model of a satellite is suspended from the ceiling in front of a wall decorated with a subtle star-field pattern. Below the images, a long glass display case houses a collection of archival materials, including open notebooks with hand-drawn sketches, a newspaper, and a small 3D model of the James Webb Space Telescope. To the right, a large video projection displays a sweeping panorama depicting a barren, mountainous landscape under a hazy, reddish sky. Below the projection and to its left is a triangular image of swirling, layered patterns of red, orange, and tan rock. A glass-topped display case holds open notebooks, small rock samples, and explanatory texts.

The telescope is one of the most impactful inventions in scientific history, although its inventor remains a mystery. Hans Lipperhey is credited as the first to apply for a patent in 1608 for a device consisting of a cardboard tube and glass lenses. Astronomers quickly saw its potential: in 1609, Thomas Harriot made the first telescopic drawings of the Moon, and in 1610, Galileo Galilei observed Jupiter’s moons. These discoveries questioned the geocentric model, which placed Earth at the centre of the universe.

Since then, telescopes have advanced to detect radio sources and bypass Earth’s atmosphere with NASA’s Hubble and James Webb Space Telescope. These tools help address a profound question: How did life begin, and could it have started on Mars? In the Pilbara, 3.48-billion-year-old rocks preserve ancient stromatolites—our earliest evidence of life. At a similar time, Mars had water and a substantial atmosphere, making it potentially habitable. While Mars is now cold and dry, its rocks hold clues to our most profound question: Are we alone? Students can now engage with the Martian surface through virtual reality excursions developed with the UNSW Immersive Learning Technologies Authoring tool, transforming planetary data into an accessible educational experience.

Transcript of audio description at Gallery 2

This is the third stop in the audio guide for The Infinite Look. On the black wall to the left, the upper corner features a large, diagonal graphic depicting the textured, fiery surface of the Sun in orange and red hues. Below this, a horizontal row of twelve circular images displays the Sun in various wavelengths, transitioning through a spectrum of colours including grey, yellow, green, pink, and blue. Positioned in front of the wall is a dark plinth supporting a light-box display with several illuminated transparencies, accompanied by a small black speaker on the floor that provides a soundscape of sonified solar data. The adjacent wall is covered in a vibrant, full-scale mural of a cosmic nebula featuring swirling clouds of red, orange, and gold gas punctuated by a field of stars. Five large, black-framed images of the Moon are mounted in a horizontal row across this mural, showcasing different historical and scientific methods of capturing the lunar surface.

This stop covers two displays in the exhibition about wavelengths and the history of astrophotography. Visible light, radio, microwaves, infrared, x-rays, gamma rays, and ultraviolet comprise the electromagnetic spectrum. Celestial objects, including our Sun, emit radiation across this entire spectrum. Specialised instruments on telescopes observe specific wavelengths; for example, NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory uses instruments such as the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly to reveal details of the Sun’s surface and magnetic activity, which can produce solar flares that disrupt telecommunications on Earth.

The history of astrophotography has evolved from manual sketches to digital precision. Following the telescope's invention in the early 1600s, astronomers recorded findings through ink drawings and hand-reproduced engravings. The mid-19th century saw the advent of photography, with early lunar images captured on silver-coated plates. By the late 1800s, tracking telescopes enabled cameras to counteract Earth’s rotation, producing sharper details on glass negatives. Large-scale projects later compiled thousands of these into lunar atlases. Today, imaging has moved beyond the traditional lens. Modern spacecraft now combine high-resolution digital cameras with laser measurements to create 3D topographic models, rendering the Moon’s surface with unprecedented precision and accuracy.

Transcript of audio description at Gallery 3

This is the fourth and final stop in the audio guide for The Infinite Look. The black gallery wall to the left features a large diagonal graphic of the lunar surface with a monochromatic, cratered landscape in the top right corner. On the left, a long white textile with fringed edges hangs vertically, featuring a central black graphic of a moon. To its right, a framed painting rendered in ochres depicts detailed concentric circles, and further right, several smaller paper works are pinned directly to the wall. Adjacent to this is a black wall featuring a large, colourful painting composed of vibrant pink and red dots with orange linear paths positioned on the far right, alongside a smaller square blue work in the centre and a cluster of several unframed historical illustrations on the left. Along the bottom left, a diagonal pinkish-red graphic depicts a glowing nebula filled with white stars. In the centre of the room, a tall black pedestal supports a clear vitrine containing a porcelain sculpture of a crocheted skull cap.

This stop covers two displays in the exhibition about the Moon and the Pleiades. For centuries, the Moon has acted as both a clock and a sacred symbol. Because its cycles are so steady, it helps cultures measure time, predict harvesting seasons, and set dates for major religious holidays like Lunar New Year, Ramadan, Easter, and Diwali. Many traditions see the Moon as a living deity: the Romans honoured Luna, while in Hindu belief, the god Chandra guides the tides. In China, the goddess Chang’e is celebrated during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Similarly, the Pleiades is a star cluster that governs agricultural and maritime cycles. It includes several blue giant stars visible to the naked eye. Greek mythology depicts the Pleiades as sisters fleeing a hunter, while Hindu tradition honours them as the Krittikas. For the Māori, the cluster rising in the winter sky marks Matariki, the New Year, to honour ancestors and celebrate the harvest. Across every continent, these celestial bodies remain a living part of global identity.

Warami! Budyari nhaady'unya Dharug Ngurrawa. Ngarradya nhaaladya ngayiridyanga dhalang gunyagu Burra Ngurrawa.

Welcome! Good to see you on Dharug Country. Listen, see and carry stories home with you of Sky Country.

Dhiyi malung mariyunga yudibanya burrawa. Nanu nhaaladya Dharug Ngurrawa bayaladyi guwiyadyi ngurragu.

This is the Dark Emu who guides us in the sky. They see Dharug Ngurra and tell us when to care for Country.

Mulumulung yanma Burra Ngurrawa. Nanu wulbangadyi wiri mala. Nanu bayilyidya guni wiri mala, walidya birrung duwabilidya.

The seven sisters walk across Sky Country. They were chased by a bad man. They fought him with their digging sticks and turned into stars to hide from him.

Dhiyi Dhungagil. Bangadya bula wagul babana maguridya wulugul. Wiri maguridya wulugul. Warungad nhaaldya maanmadya ngalawadya darimi burrawa dhungagilwa.

This is Orion's Belt. It was made by three brothers who went fishing for kingfish. It was bad to fish for kingfish. They were seen by the Old Ones and were made to stay forever in the sky on Orion's Belt.