“Ground Control” exhibit explores our fascination with the red planet

Why are we so obsessed with Martians and their little, red planet? Ground Control, a new exhibit by artist Bill Finger, seeks to answer that question and explores what type of people risk it all to become astronauts bound for Mars.

Finger’s exhibit debuts at Punch Gallery Sept.  6-29.

Many proponents of taking the next step in manned space exploration have concluded that, due to logistics and finances, the only way forward is through a series of one-way trips to the red planet. These Astronauts would be signing on to living the rest of their lives attempting to create a colony, roughly 154 million miles away from their former home.

Creating and photographing miniature dioramas, Finger looks to these questions while exploring the mystique of the Astronaut as popular figure and Mars as mystical destination.

Finger’s work often draws from his past experiences as an Assistant Cameraman in the Film Industry. His work centers on the construction and photographing of miniature “sets.” Finger has been exhibited widely both in the US and Canada. His images are also included in the permanent collection at the George Eastman House Museum of Photography in Rochester, NY.