Satpreet Kahlon's quasi-moon of styrofoam * Oregon ArtsWatch

"Astronomers use the term quasi-moon to describe a mass that appears to orbit Earth while actually maintaining its own orbit around the sun. It is never fully captured by Earth's gravity."

"Kahlon worked with a committed team of fabricators to create this asteroid using recycled styrofoam one might find in the bin behind a grocery store-bits and pieces meant to buffer and hold their contents without adding too much weight in the process. They pile at organic and oblique angles, conjuring a sensation of otherworldly physics by appearing to almost float outward and upward."

"At PICA, Kahlon conceived a massive installation at the NASA-estimated scale of the quasi-moon PN7, quite fitting given her penchant for stargazing. "Astronomers use the term quasi-moon to describe a mass that appears to orbit Earth while actually maintaining its own orbit around the sun. It is never fully captured by Earth's gravity," the curatorial statement explains."

"One night at Caldera when I was walking back to my cabin, I passed Kahlon standing outside looking at the clear starry sky with binoculars. When I paused in curiosity, she drew my attention to what looked like an especially bright star that was glimmering and told me "that's Saturn." Thanks to Kahlon, when I can see the stars, I often look for the glimmer of Saturn."

Celestial bodies have long served as navigation aids and objects of spiritual reflection, inspiring curiosity from afar. In Panjabi-born artist Satpreet Kahlon’s exhibition at PICA, a quasi-moon becomes a proximal presence through a site-specific installation in the warehouse gallery. The installation is scaled to NASA estimates for 2025 PN7 and is titled an imagined place (here and now). The quasi-moon concept describes a mass that appears to orbit Earth while actually orbiting the sun, never fully captured by Earth’s gravity. Kahlon’s team fabricates the asteroid using recycled styrofoam, arranging pieces at organic and oblique angles so the form seems to float outward and upward, evoking otherworldly physics.

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