Discover Eden Images and descriptions for large print Contents The site with the Core building 3 Eden site from the air 5 Eden at Night: Our winter festival – Time of Gifts 6 Coffee. What’s it all about? 7 Dionysus in the Vines 8 Eden’s first automata: The Dead Cat 9 Interior of the Core 11 The Plant Engine 12 Weather People 13 Water purification 14 Air conditioning 15 Mandrake capturing carbon 16 Nutrient and waste recycling 17 Layers of biodiversity 18 Lessons from nature 19 People on a bowl of strawberries 20 Water cabinet 21 Climate cabinet 22 Biodiversity 23 The Plant Processor 24 The Resource Files 25 The Locker Room Lives 26 Idea card 27 Rooted to the ground 28 Envirodance 29 Spaceship Earth 30 Lords of the land 31 The Knowledge 32 Robot head 33 DNA animation 34 Watercolour Shed 35 Tom, looking shocked 36 Working at the computers 37 Artist and palm tree 38 The site with the Core building This image shows Eden as it appears today. In front of us, in the centre of the photograph is the Core building. The brown copper roof, shaped like a giant leaf curves down to the ground in a point. In the centre of the roof is a circular well surrounded by banks of solar panels. Triangular skylights stick up from the roof. Behind and to the right of the Core are the two Biome domes, their hexagonal inflated plastic panels reflecting the sunshine of this sunny day. Directly behind the Core is the curved white canopy of the stage. To the left of the picture the main path zig-zags up the side of the pit to the sweeping curve of the Visitor Centre. In the background, above the Biomes, the rolling Cornish countryside stretches into the distance. Eden site from the air The photograph shows the extent of the old china clay pit. The whole site is a pale grey colour that contrasts strongly with the deep greens of the Cornish fields and hedgerows that surround the pit. On the left side of the pit are six large terraces, each the height of a house, which step down to a grey pool at the bottom of the pit. On the right hand side of the photograph a track zigzags to the bottom of the pit. Eden at Night: Our winter festival – Time of Gifts This photograph shows the night-time lantern parade at the Time of Gifts. The biomes and the ice rink building glow against the darkness of the sky and cliff walls of the pit. The biomes are lit up with pink and yellow lights. In the middle ground a snaking procession of triangular paper lanterns and illuminated sculptures winds its way from the ice rink on the right towards us on a path to the left. Six flares burn brightly in foreground and illuminate strips of different plants. Coffee. What’s it all about? This photograph shows the coffee exhibit in the Humid Tropics Biome. The exhibit takes the form of a stall constructed of wooden poles. The roof is made from fibre matting and the rear wall is constructed from rough planks. At the front of the stall is a row of five sacks with coffee facts printed on them in black. Inside the stall is a large coffee grinder. The handle to turn and grind the coffee is visible. The grey metal hopper at the top of the machine is full of coffee beans. A young girl stands on her tiptoes and leans in to the exhibit to look at some photographs of coffee production that have been pinned to the rear wall. Dionysus in the Vines This photograph shows the sculptures that occupy the vineyard area in the warm temperate biome. Made from a dark grey metal, four life-size, naked figures dance around a huge bull that rears above them. The figures seem to dance crazily, as though they were drunk. They wear animal head masks and they beat on drums. One also blows a fife. The effect is both exciting and frightening as though a party is about to get out of control. Behind the sculptured figures rises the roof of the biome and the blue sky beyond. Eden’s first automata: The Dead Cat This photograph shows the Plant Takeaway exhibit in the visitors centre. The exhibit is life-sized and shows a room with furniture and two figures in it. The walls of the room are made from steel with holes punched in it that let light through. The floor is tiled in a chessboard pattern of black and white tiles. In the far left corner a stands a wooden female figure. In the far right corner stands a male figure. Looking in through the window in the back wall is the figure of a young boy. In the centre of the room are a blue table and three chairs. On the floor nearby is a wooden cat painted in red and orange stripes. It is drinking milk from a blue and white striped bowl. A black wooden dog lies on a pink rug in front of the fire. Above the exhibit is the title Plant Takeaway spelled out in green neon lights. Picture of Core in day This picture, taken from the bluff on the southern end of the Eden site, shows the Core building in the foreground. The design of the copper roof echoes the forms of a sunflower. The triangular skylights stick up sharply from the curving brown roof. In the centre of the building is a circular light shaft. In the background the rest of the Eden site fans out. On the right hand side of the picture are the two white domes of the Warm Temperate and Humid Tropics biomes. In centre of the picture is the white curved structure of the ice-rink building. To the left the main pathway to the visitors centre snakes up the side of the pit. and at night; exteriors This image shows the Core building at night. The building is lit up from below by blue and pink lights and the triangular skylight structures are silhouetted against orange and white floodlights that are blurred by movement and smoke or mist. The building is also lit from within by blue and pink light that is visible through the triangular skylight windows and through the vertical windows in the wall. Interior of the Core This image shows the interior of the Core building seen from the ground floor. Dominating the image is the great curved wooden roof beams that fan in a web-like pattern from a set of curving windows above us. Blue sky is visible through these windows. On the right a staircase descends towards us. In the centre of the picture is a machine made of dark and rusty looking metal. It is perhaps ten meters high and consists of a complicated array of flywheels, rods, gears and tubes. This is the Plant Processor. In front of it stands a small, thick branched tree, upon which sit four circular display cases arranged at angles around it. On the very left of the picture is the edge of the Water display. The Plant Engine This image shows the Plant Engine situated beneath the curving ceiling of the Core education building. In the centre of the image is a spherical greenhouse perhaps four meters in diameter. Eight grey tubes sprout from the top and connect the sphere to each of the eight bell jars described below. The tubes are suspended in swags from the ceiling. In the photograph they are slightly blurry, as though they are moving. A few meters above the sphere arches a semi-circular metal track. At the right of the picture there is a large electric lamp fixed to the track which provides light to the plants. Weather People This image is of a bell jar with three wooden figures in it. One is a woman in a red dress the other two are men in suits. Around the three figures is a clear plastic wall with lots of tiny white rain dots on it that partially hides the figures. Beneath the base of the figures is a complicated mechanism that makes the figures move. Water purification This image shows a bell jar in which a small wooden figure of a man appears to be swimming. Around him are twelve small glass spheres supported by copper wire. Below the base is a complicated system of pulleys and weights that makes him move. Air conditioning This image shows a bell jar containing small wooden figures. There is a horse, two geese, three people and a pig. All the figures have tiny oxygen masks on and each one is connected to the top of the jar by a red plastic hose. Beneath the base of the display are a number of thicker hoses and other mechanisms to make the figures move. Mandrake capturing carbon This image shows a bell jar containing a model of a mandrake root. This mandrake root has been made to look like a figure: it has arms and hands. In its right hand it holds a net above its head which it uses to capture carbon from the air. Beneath the Mandrake root is a complicated mechanism that makes it move. Nutrient and waste recycling This image shows a bell jar containing three faces half sunk into the base of the display representing birth, life and death. Beneath the base is an array of metal rods and wooden levers to move the head. Layers of biodiversity This image shows a bell jar divided into five layers by clear glass discs. On each of these discs is a selection of colourful plastic figures. On the lowest disc are blobs and spiky shapes that represent single celled organisms. On the top disc are figures of people. Different levels of animals are represented on the levels in-between. Lessons from nature This image shows a tiny model helicopter suspended in a bell jar. The helicopter is yellow supported by a thin glass rod about half way up the bell jar. It is surrounded by six sycamore seeds, also on glass rods. The rotors of the helicopter and the seeds are spinning so fast that they appear as blurs in the photograph. People on a bowl of strawberries This image shows a bell jar containing a bowl of shiny red strawberries all carved from wood. Two unpainted wooden figures lie across the strawberries. Two strawberries have been knocked from the bowl a lie at the foot of the jar. Water cabinet This picture shows the Water exhibit. It is a rusty red metal cabinet that looks like a water tank, with rusty pipes on the top. The cabinet has glass panels through which a display of items connected with water are visible. Climate cabinet This picture shows the Climate exhibit in the core building. The exhibit looks like a white wooden greenhouse. The decorative ridge of the greenhouse spells out the word climate in sharp old fashioned lettering that looks like old Victorian wrought ironwork. On the top of the greenhouse is a weather vane with a copper coloured rooster. Inside the greenhouse are many exhibits – plant pots, a globe, a bell jar and many pictures - that relate to climate change. Biodiversity This is a picture of the biodiversity cabinet in the Core. The cabinet resembles an old-fashioned museum cabinet. Four vertical glass cabinets surmount two double width angled one at waist height. The cabinets contain different exhibits relating to biodiversity. The Plant Processor This image shows an enormous and complex machine. It is constructed of levers, gears, pipes, wheels and other pieces of scrap yard junk. It is mainly black and stands about eight meters high. A man in a red sweatshirt stands in front of it and looks up at the machine. The Resource Files This photograph shows a grey structure about two meters high and containing two columns of 23 shallow wooden drawers like a giant filing cabinet. Each drawer has a metal name tag holder. On some drawers there are words in these holders, on some there are question marks. The lower left drawer lies open. To each side of the drawers are tall narrow pictures comprised of squares of orange, blue, white and green. Above the picture on the right is written “The Resource Files”. Below the picture is written “when one drawer closes another opens”. The Locker Room Lives This photograph shows a display comprising two grey metal lockers side by side. The buff coloured steel doors of both lockers are open to show the contents. The left hand locker has a blue sweatshirt pinned to it along with a number of pieces of paper. Among the items on the locker shelves are a bunch of corn cobs. A red and green parrot sits on the open door. On the right hand locker door hangs a long black dress embroidered with flowers in pink and red. The sleeves and décolletage are edged with gold and silver thread. Among the items in this locker are a plate of fried chicken drumsticks and a battered copy of the Koran. Above the display a sign reads “Locker Room Lives”. Idea card This photograph shows a row of fridge doors with pink I.D. Cards stuck to them. The nearest card has a photograph of two children’s faces and reads: “Idea card. Name: will and alex. Job: pupils. Idea: waste nothing”. At the bottom of the card is a box with a thumbprint and “proof of idea” written beside it. Rooted to the ground This image shows a man in a grey tee shirt and dark blue jeans apparently dancing in one of three green booths of an arcade game. The booths are semi-circular and about waist height. Above each booth is a plastic storm cloud and a bright yellow lightning bolt. At the back of the arcade game is an oval painted backdrop. A figure, half human, half tree reaches into the sky. Behind the figure dark hills are silhouetted against a grey stormy sky. White lightning bolts zig-zag across the picture. Envirodance This image shows a young man in jeans and a black sweatshirt dancing on the platform of a machine. He has his back to us and is staring at a video screen on which dance steps are displayed. His arms are down by his sides and his right foot is blurred as it moves from one step to another. The platform is about 20 centimetres from the ground and is marked with four symbols to indicate where he should put his feet. A grey railing constructed from sections of scaffolding keeps him from falling backwards. To either side of the screen in front of him are loudspeakers painted bright orange. Along the top of the machine is a row of thirteen empty bottles turned upside-down. Spaceship Earth This picture shows an arcade-style shooting game. Two young men in dark clothing are using the laser-style guns that are mounted on the front of the booth to shoot at rows of pictures that cover the back of the booth. The pictures include trees, people, slugs, ducks and fish. Above the booth is a curved title that reads Spaceship Earth. Below the title is a painting of man in a space suit standing in front of the Eden biomes. He holds a space helmet and a green laser gun. Also in front of the biomes is a large dinosaur. On the far side of the booth the image of the spaceman is repeated. A speech bubble appears out of his mouth containing the words “curious – these life-forms appear to be linked”. Lords of the land This photograph shows an amusement arcade-style game. The lower half of the picture shows a mock-up of the back of a red tractor. One huge tractor tyre fills the bottom right corner. A yellow number plate reads MCUK 2005 and above this a bar contains amber indicator lights. A young man in dark clothing sits on the black plastic seat of the tractor. We see him from the back. His right hand is on the tractor’s steering wheel. He looks ahead at a screen on which appears a landscape that he pretends to drive through. A gear lever sits below and to the right of the steering wheel. To the left of this tractor we can see half of an identical tractor. The screen in this one is dark as it is switched off. The Knowledge This image shows a man getting into a London taxi. The taxi faces us and the orange taxi light on the roof is illuminated. The windscreen is blacked out and a painted figure of the driver, who bears a passing resemblance to Elvis, can be seen. The man getting into the taxi wears jeans, a dark green jacket and a cap. He has his right foot on the footplate as he enters the car. Robot head This image shows one of the robots from the chest up. The robot has no clothes or makeup on and so the structure of its body is visible. It is constructed of black and grey tubes with thin blue hoses connected to the pistons at shoulder and neck that make the robot move. The head is pale grey, shaped like an upside-down teardrop and appears to be carved from wood. It has a rectangular nose and a rectangular slot for a mouth. DNA animation This image looks like an x-ray. It is an image of a green double helix of DNA on a black background. On closer inspection the helices are composed of what look like parts of the robots. Watercolour Shed This image is a watercolour painting of a corrugated iron shed. The shed is a mixture of ochre and rusty red colours and is seen from the gable end. There is a widow in the wall through which we can see some tools stacked up. At the right hand side a drain pipe leads from the roof to an oil drum. A hose is coiled and hung on the wall and to the left of the hose a rake has been leant against the wall. Tom, looking shocked This image shows one of the robot actors, Tom, looking shocked. He wears grey trousers and a blue jumper. Working at the computers This image shows a man in a grey hooded top working on a laptop at a desk. He is surrounded by other computer screens. The screens show a variety of software used to produce sound and images for the Mechanical Theatre. A scanner sits on the desk in the foreground and on the wall are pinned a picture of the poison arrow frog and a picture of a forest. Artist and palm tree A long haired young man in a black jacket and brown woolly hat looks up at a paper cut out palm tree that has been stuck to the wall. Below the tree three paper bananas have also been stuck to the wall. This has been developed by the Sensory Trust in association with the Eden Project. It is the copyright of Eden Project. The original exhibits to which this resource responds can be found at Eden Project; they are the copyright of Engineered Arts and are the property of the Eden Project. This document is free to download from the Eden Project website / Sensory Trust website. Any further use, reproduction or publication of the full resource, any parts of the resource, or photographic reproductions of the exhibits, must be with written permission from the Eden Project. www.edenproject.com www.sensorytrust.org.uk This work has been kindly funded by the ReDiscover Fund, a joint venture between the Millennium Commission, Wellcome Foundation and Wolfson Trust. This resource has been inclusively designed by the Sensory Trust in partnership with the Eden Project The Sensory Trust is supported by the Big Lottery Fund