Spectacular Sun sculpture Helios lights up Swansea Minster for Arts Weekend

Visitors to the city centre church can step inside the glowing seven‑metre sphere, which uses detailed NASA imagery and surround sound to bring the Sun’s surface to life.

Immersive artwork arrives in Swansea

The touring artwork, titled Helios, has been created by UK artist Luke Jerram, whose previous astronomical installations include Museum of the Moon and Gaia.

Measuring seven metres in diameter, the internally lit sculpture is covered with high‑resolution imagery of the Sun’s surface, compiled from more than 400,000 photographs by astrophotographer Dr Stuart Green and NASA observations, with guidance from solar scientist Professor Lucie Green of UCL.

Each centimetre of the artwork represents around 2,000km of the Sun’s surface, allowing visitors to safely examine features such as sunspots, spicules and filaments that are normally impossible to view with the naked eye.

The glowing surface of Helios dominates the Minster’s interior, inviting visitors to experience the Sun in a new light.A closer view of Helios reveals intricate solar textures, from sunspots to filaments, recreated in extraordinary detail inside Swansea Minster.Helios fills the nave of Swansea Minster, its glowing sphere framed by the church’s ornate vaulted roof.Images: Swansea Minster

Sound, science and storytelling

The installation is accompanied by a specially created surround sound composition by Duncan Speakman and Sarah Anderson, blending music with live NASA recordings.

The sculpture also highlights the source of the solar flares that caused the Northern Lights to be visible across the UK in May 2024.

As it tours, Helios collects personal responses and stories, while also acting as a venue for events ranging from choral performances to science lectures and wellbeing workshops.

Ancient myths meet modern science

In Greek mythology, Helios was the god who personified the Sun, driving his chariot across the sky each day. Jerram’s artwork draws on that symbolism while connecting audiences with the latest solar science and the cultural importance of sunlight across religions and traditions.

The project has been co‑commissioned by the National Trust, Cork Midsummer Festival, Liverpool Cathedral, Old Royal Naval College and University College London.

Swansea Arts Weekend highlight

Swansea Arts Weekend runs on 11 and 12 October, with venues across the city hosting performances, exhibitions and workshops. The installation at Swansea Minster is free to view, offering a rare chance to experience the Sun’s scale and detail in the heart of the city centre.

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Volunteers launch social group for patients in Swansea city centre cafe

Once a fortnight they welcome patients receiving support from the Specialist Palliative Care team to the Cartrefi Social Bean Hub in St Mary’s Square.

There the patients can share experiences with people in a similar situation to their own and enjoy arts and crafts and music sessions – away from a hospital setting.

The team of volunteers at Ty Olwen is now more than 30 strong. They do everything from running the tea bar and keeping the garden looking its best, providing volunteer transport and supporting patients and families on the wards.

They have now linked with Cartrefi Cymru Co-Operative, a not-for-profit organisation that mainly supports people with learning disabilities.

It runs the Social Bean Hub, which the Ty Olwen volunteers have been hiring every other Wednesday since early April.

“It’s for our community patients who would benefit from support and companionship from Ty Olwen,” said Helen Martin, who manages the Ty Olwen volunteer team.

“When you’re ill and don’t get out to see your friends as much, it can be a very isolating experience.

“Now, the patients can come in and they can talk about whatever they want, or about anything that’s on their mind. We have our team of fantastic volunteers who can support that.

“The feedback from the patients has been great. They are very pleased to have somewhere they can come and meet other people in the same situation as theirs.

“A bit of peer support from each other has been great to see. And it’s away from a hospital setting, which was deliberate. We don’t want people to feel as if they are in a medical environment.”

Helen said one of the meetings included music from volunteer Aly Loring, while another involved card-making.

“We have asked the people what they want to do, like painting or whatever,” she added. “But it’s mostly about giving them the opportunity to get away from home and speak about things that maybe they would prefer not to talk to their family about.”

Social group member Angela Pridmore with volunteer Alison McNamara.
(Image: Swansea Bay NHS)

One participant, Angela Pridmore, from Fforestfach said: “I’ve been looking for outlets so when I was contacted about the social group, I was very interested.

“This is my third session here. It has been very interesting and enjoyable.

“We’ve shared stories and had a music session, which was really uplifting. It’s great. I would advise anyone to come along if they are able to.”

Alison McNamara, who lives in Clydach, volunteers on the Ty Olwen inpatient unit and also supports the social group. She is a relative newcomer, having joined the volunteering ranks earlier this year.

Alison lost her first husband eight years ago. He was in a hospice in Warwickshire at the end of his life and Alison fundraised for it by walking 1,000 miles over the space of a year.

But, she said, she wanted to do more than just raise money. Since moving to Wales, Alison, who remarried and has a young son, has completed a psychology degree.

“I would like to become a counsellor,” she said. “I was looking around for places to volunteer to get some experience of talking to people with the purpose of helping them.

“It can be tough on the ward. But here we do things like card-making, there’s a bit more space and it’s a social get-together, which is nice.”

So far only a limited number of patients have attended the social group, but Helen hopes it will grow as more of them become aware of it.

“If anyone who is looked after by the specialist palliative care team would like to come along, we would welcome them,” she said.

“It’s in central Swansea. They can be dropped off right outside the door and the bus station and taxi rank are really close.

“We took a long time choosing a venue. Cartrefi have been really accommodating. They completely got from the beginning what we were trying to achieve, and they have made us so welcome.

“They have their own volunteers who come in and serve us. It’s good for them, as well, to be able to see their beautiful facility used by the wider population.”

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