Luke Jerram’s celebrated artwork GAIA will be suspended above the stage of London’s Royal Festival Hall this August, creating a spectacular backdrop for a weekend of performances by the BBC Concert Orchestra.
Running from 28th–30th August 2026, the installation will place Jerram’s seven-metre-diameter sculpture of the Earth at the heart of a programme of concerts exploring humanity’s relationship with the planet through orchestral and choral music.
Luke Jerram’s Gaia on display in Belfast, with audience members silhouetted in front of it Courtesy Luke Jerram
Created using high-resolution NASA imagery of the Earth’s surface, GAIA recreates the experience of seeing the planet from space. Named after the Greek goddess who personifies Earth, the monumental artwork has become one of Jerram’s most recognised installations, inviting audiences to reflect on the beauty and fragility of our world.
The weekend opens on Friday 28th August with Sounds of the Earth, performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra under conductor Chloé van Soeterstède. Featuring works by Ralph Vaughan Williams and Hildur Guðnadóttir, the concert explores expansive musical landscapes inspired by nature and the cosmos.
On Saturday 29th August, Grammy Award-winning composer and conductor Eric Whitacre presents Eternity in an Hour, an electro-choral performance with the Eric Whitacre Singers that encourages audiences to pause and contemplate the Earth through music, meditation and immersive sound.
The following day, visitors will have the opportunity to experience GAIA independently of the concert programme. On Sunday 30th August, the artwork will remain on display inside the Royal Festival Hall accompanied by a specially commissioned surround-sound composition by BAFTA Award-winning composer Dan Jones, allowing visitors to walk beneath and around the sculpture while experiencing what astronauts have described as the “Overview Effect”—the profound shift in perspective that comes from viewing Earth from space.
Since its debut in 2018, GAIA has travelled internationally, appearing in locations including Liverpool Cathedral, Australia’s Gold Coast and the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow. Its presentation at the Royal Festival Hall continues the artwork’s mission of combining art, science and environmental reflection through large-scale public installations.
Bringing together visual art, live orchestral performance and immersive sound, the weekend promises a unique encounter with one of the most recognisable artworks of the past decade.
GAIA is part of the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary programme. GAIA has been created in partnership with the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Bluedot and the UK Association for Science and Discovery Centres. With supporting partners Culture Liverpool and Liverpool Cathedral. The imagery for the artwork has been compiled from Visible Earth series, NASA.
About the artist
Since 1997, UK-based artist Luke Jerram has maintained a multidisciplinary practice of sculptures, installations and live arts projects, spanning nearly 1,000 exhibitions worldwide. His work often addresses challenging concepts and planetary health. Major projects like Gaia, Oil Fountain and This Way Forward prompt critical discussions about climate change and sustainability. Based in Bristol, Jerram is also a philanthropist who supports art graduates and schools, formalising his charitable efforts through the establishment of the Jerram Foundation in 2024.
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