From the Moon

Triennale Milano has launched a podcast called From the Moon, which introduces some of the themes of the 23rd International Exhibition entitled Unknown Unknowns: An Introduction to Mysteries, curated by Ersilia Vaudo, taking place at Triennale from May 20 to November 20, 2022. The podcast, launched exactly one year before the opening of the International Exhibition, is created by journalist David Plaisant, who also developed Architecture & Anthropocene, the first Triennale podcast, in 2019.

The aim of From the Moon is to navigate a global audience towards the opening of the International Exhibition with a series of seven episodes. In each one leading names from the worlds of culture and science will discuss some of the key issues facing the world today, from their perspective, and from the perspective of observing our planet, from the moon. 

From the moon, Planet Earth is a beautiful sphere of blues, greens and swirling white clouds. It is a seemingly peaceful composition that holds within it everything: all the people, places and stories of our existence. But how can we decipher all those experiences, all those elements that distinguish us as human beings? And how do we interpret the greatness of the natural world, the effects of climate change and above all—how everything is interconnected?

This podcast will attempt to tackle some of these vast questions, seeking perspectives rather than answers—our metaphorical vantage point giving us some distance, and hopefully some clarity, all from the moon. Using the tools and brains from the worlds of culture, design, science, philosophy, medicine and more besides, From the Moon will take listeners on a journey through time, space and knowledge. The podcast tries and unpack the state of the planet via different topics that interweave with and complement the theme of the 23rd Triennale Milano International Exhibition.

The podcast has more than 30 guest participants, including Stefano Boeri, architect and President of Triennale Milano; Ersilia Vaudo, astrophysicist, Chief Diversity Officer at ESA and curator of the 23rd International Exhibition; Paola Antonelli, senior curator of the Department of Architecture & Design and Director of Research and Development at MoMA; designers Formafantasma; curator, writer, and artist Legacy Russell; architect Anupama Kundoo; artist, writer, and publisher Kandis Williams; former astronaut and engineer Paolo Nespoli; philosopher Emanuele Coccia; architect and curator Joseph Grima; information designer Giorgia Lupi, and many others.

The podcast soundtrack is composed by Jon Arnold of Super Drama. The visual identity of Unknown Unknowns (and of the podcast series too) is designed by 2x4, New York.

The first three episodes are already available. The next episodes of From the Moon will be published on July 8 (ep.4: “The World at Night”), on July 22 (ep.5: “Space from Earth”), on August 5 (ep.6: “Farewell Humanity!”), and on August 19 (ep.7: “Hope”).

The episodes are available in the Triennale online magazine and on the Apple Podcast and Spotify platforms.