When H.G. Wells’ classic novel “War of the Worlds” was adapted for radio in 1938, its news broadcast format famously fooled many listeners into believing Martians actually were invading Earth.
That mistaken history is essentially what Brunswick filmmaker and artist Christian Matzke is running with. Matzke, his wife, Sarah, and Portland artist Graham Meyer are collaborating on the art exhibit “Forgotten Wars,” which opens at 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2, at Sanctuary Tattoo & Art Gallery at 31 Forest Ave. For the interplanetary portion of “Forgotten Wars,” Matzke built anti-Martian firearms, early 20th century-styled recruitment posters, a space-traveling soldier’s uniform and — the piece de resistance — a massive drop pod in which people can actually fit and imagine jettisoning to Mars.
The pod, which took two years to piece together and four people to move from the back of a moving truck and into Sanctuary Tattoo on Thursday, is fashioned from an old medical capsule and festooned with brass dials and gaskets.