For the rest of this month, the dreams of the Soviet space programme are alive in London. In the exhibition Beyond Zero the Calvert 22 gallery explores how Russian artists have been inspired by man’s evolving engagement with the cosmos. The works featured in the exhibition date from the 1930s to the present day, showing how artists have continued to challenge the conventions of time … Continue reading Exhibition of the Month: Beyond Zero
A whole host of unlikely Cold War characters – from spies to presidents – have had secret ambitions to become artists. And that also includes astronauts. Alan Bean was a NASA astronaut for 18 years during the height of the Cold War and was the fourth person to walk on the Moon during the Apollo 12 mission in November 1969. Upon retiring from the space agency … Continue reading Alan Bean: The Artist Astronaut
When Soviet pilot Yuri Gagarin completed an orbit of the Earth aboard the Vostok 1 spacecraft on 12 April 1961, his life would never be the same again. As the first human to travel into outer space, marking a triumphant victory in the Soviet’s ‘space race’ with the United States, Gagarin was transformed overnight into an international celebrity. The cosmonaut’s likeness would soon appear in … Continue reading Yuri Gagarin: The Soviet Superman
