The Martian Museum was conceptualized in 2006 as a response to Burt Rutan’s lecture ‘The Real Future Of Space Exploration’. In his talk, Rutan laments the decline in excitement for contemporary space exploration and outlines how this lack of cultural relevance has negatively impacted our progress in space.

Considering his claims, it becomes apparent that there is a way for artists to make a critical contribution to space exploration. While it is true that artists are somewhat limited when it comes to the fields of science and engineering, it is indisputable that artists are uniquely suited to generate cultural discussion and incite interest in space exploration.

Becoming interplanetary will be our greatest achievement in furthering mankind. This leap carries big philosophical questions, each with innumerate practical applications and cultural consequences. As such, art can serve not only as a source of inspiration, but also as a platform for us to sculpt these ideas, even before they can be scientifically implemented. This cultural project operates on the imperative that when we do create an interplanetary civilisation, what we create will be worth all the effort.

This is at the foundation of The Martian Museum. It is a project that calls upon the leading artists of our time to inspire excitement in space exploration and provides us a framework to develop ideas for our future in space.

The Martian Museum will also represent a growing collection of artwork, specifically curated for the first museums of the Martian colony. The Martian Collection will present an archive of the thoughts and values of the world’s leading artists during the nascency of interplanetary expansion. It is my hope that the collection will grow into a valuable cultural asset for the Martian colony as a tangible connection to Earth, as well as a key platform for exchange between the two planets, long into our future.

In 2006, the idea of preparing a collection of artwork for the first museums on Mars was an incredulous pitch. As personally invested as I was in the idea, it was difficult to explain to others, primarily because the idea is predicated on the inevitability of a Martian colony. At the time, this future was not clearly evident to the greater public. But in 2020, in no small part thanks to the work of Elon Musk and SpaceX, the majority can see that a Martian colony will be a reality within the century. Also, considering how wacky 20's have been so far, it seems the perfect time to announce a museum for Mars.

The next step towards the Martian Cultural Project is to assemble a core team of curatorial staff and advisors, map out the first projects and then approach investors to realize them. Rinse and repeat until Mars. Easy enough, right? We'll see. We cannot know for certain when Mars will hold a human civilization, much as we cannot know what the future holds for us here on Earth. But what I do know is that since its inception, the Martian Museum has been all I can think about and sharing this vision is the first step towards making Martian culture a reality.

‍Alexander Mitchell
‍Director - The Martian Cultural Project