Asa Lee’s project began with a chance discovery at a flea market of a print. The artist sets out to uncover the print’s origins by researching the context of the depicted supernova. After years of investigation, Lee discovered that the print’s author was Berlin artist Katharina Meldner, born in 1943. The project showcases a letter written by Lee to Meldner, discussing photography, art, science, chance, and the artistic process.

The cyanotypes on display are a blend of real and imagined images, incorporating archives of astronomical glass plates from the Hamburger Sternwarte and Harvard Observatory and original creations made by the artist using various materials to construct star formations. The work also includes selections from scientific and biographical sources, through which Lee explored the discovery of Supernova SN 1937C and the context of its related scientists.