United In Space

On this date in 1961 Yuri Gagarin was the first man in space. The General Assembly, in its resolution A/RES/65/271 of 7 April 2011, declared 12 April as the International Day of Human Space Flight “to celebrate each year at the international level the beginning of the space era for mankind, reaffirming the important contribution of space science and technology in achieving sustainable development goals and increasing the well-being of States and peoples, as well as ensuring the realization of their aspiration to maintain outer space for peaceful purposes.”

Today we celebrated at the sculpture of Yuri Gagarin with people from Nasa, as well as Russians and Americans. In 2012 a group from Russia gave Houston, Texas a sculpture of Yuri Gagarin. It sits outside of the original NASA headquarters on Wayside Drive along with a panel of John Glenn. On that date the United in Space project began as Sophya Tabarovsky desired to raise funds in America to send a sculpture of Neil Armstrong. The land has been designated and as you know, at this date we are trying to raise the funds to place not only a sculpture in Russia but also one in Space Center Houston.

Khou Television was there to cover the event. Students from Russia were also in attendance. They have taken part in an exchange program between Russia and the United States. Kelly Callens also took part in the Moscow Summer Intern Program as part of a student initiative of the Baker Institute Space Policy Program. She filmed a Facebook Live at the Yuri Sculpture with Sculptor Bridgette Mongeon. According to the Baker Institute website about this program website, “The purpose of the Moscow Summer Intern Program is to develop international collaborations in which engineering and science students from different countries work together to design space science projects.”

“The intent is to emulate the successes of the international cooperation and innovation that formed the basis of the International Space Station and replicate the process at the university level for the next generation of space engineers and scientists.”

Kelley comments, “For me it really opened my eyes to just to how… it is a goal for humankind to go to space. It is not a goal for a country, its not a goal for just one group of people. It really is a united goal for all humankind and we can’t get there with just one country, it has to be a group effort. So, that really opened my eyes. ”

“There is one thing that I’ll never forget that Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev told us while we are there. He said, the coolest thing.. when he went to space, and you don’t realize how significant that we could be until you get up there and you see how small the earth is, and you realize that there is no boarders. You can’t see the borders of your country, he said. It is your city, and your state, and country, and then its the world. When you realize that you can’t see conflict, you can’t see poverty, you can’t see any of those things and it really changed his perspective. .. We need to work together, and we are one group of people.”

For us at United In Space this process is more than just raising funds for a sculpture. We hope to do what Kelly has said, we hope to encourage relationships and dialogue between countries. We are United in Space. It was a great day at the sculpture and a wonderful way to celebrate the kickoff of this Neil Armstrong sculpture. Please pass the word about the fundraising. Every little bit helps.

Many thanks to KHOU for their segment on the sculpture project.

The United in Space team is very excited about these two sculptures. A substantial amount of money needs to be raised to be able to create, ship and install these sculptures in Space Center Houston and in Russia.

We have listed man ways you can donate- through pay pal, go fund me and on this website every little bit helps.

But are there other ways you can help?

• Share the video and press release or talk about the project in social media. You never know. The next person that sees it might be able to make a difference.
• Encourage students and teachers to get involved. Follow the artist, use the educational links and share what your school is doing to celebrate and learn about space especially as it pertains to STEM and STEAM. What are you curious about? Are you from America or Russia?

Through the beginning stages of this project sculptor Bridgette Mongeon has had to do a lot of research into the spacesuit that Neil Armstrong wore on the moon.

At the same time that Mongeon was beginning to do more extensive research on Neil Armstrong she was also writing a Book on 3D technology in Fine art. She was delighted to discover that in 2015 the Smithsonian began a Kickstarter to enable them not only to try to preserve the suit but to use digital technology such as 3D scanning, photogrammetry, chemical analysis, CT scanning, to create a digital map of the suit.

Though the Smithsonian has been under a deadline to get the suit restored and on display for the 50th anniversary, Space Center Houston has put Mongeon in contact with designated individuals on the project who can assist the artist in trying to capture this important detail.

Sculptor Bridgette Mongeon’s hope is that she can obtain the 3D model of the suit to assist her in her process.

EDUCATION-

Mongeon is very passionate about 3D scanning especially as it pertains to cultural artifacts and has written about it in her book 3D Technology in Fine Art and Craft: Exploring 3D Printing, Scanning Sculpting, and Milling.

Mongeon uses 3D scanning in her work all the time. She will use it with the Neil Armstrong sculpture as well. Recently she scanned a model of her Alice in Wonderland Sculpture. Check out her video showing the 3D scan of Alice. of Alice. Fast forward to 5:14 to see the scan.

Why is 3D scanning important? 3D scanning allows us to preserve and present cultural artifacts. The Smithsonian is not new to 3D scanning; in fact, many museums are scanning their collections so that people from all over the world can view them. Visit Smithsonian x3d to see what else they have scanned.

Another resource for 3D scanning and education is CyArk. CyArk is a nonprofit organization founded in 2003 to digitally record, archive and share the world’s most significant cultural heritage and ensure that these places continue to inspire wonder and curiosity for decades to come. Check out their scan of Mount Rushmore, the Royal Tombs of Kasubi or the Parthenon. They offer free lesson plans for students on their website.

Did you know that NASA has free 3D models on their website? Their website says you will find a growing collection of 3D models, textures, and images from inside NASA. All of these resources are free to download and use.

As part of the Smithsonian Kickstarter for Neil Armstrong Suit preservation they did offer the glove as a 3D file for printing. With a little digging Mongeon found this link that provides files.

Keep watching for more educational resources. What is your class doing with 3D scanning or 3D objects?

From the artist’s Studio- Sculptor Bridgette Mongeon

As you see in the video on YouTube, much has happened with this sculpture since first being introduced to it and the project when it was a dream in 2012. The sculpture has gone through a couple of design revisions. When first approached by Sophya Tabarovski in 2012 I searched the internet for images of my subject. Many images are documenting Neil Armstrong’s accomplishments and life through his space travels, for which I am thankful.

In the original design I liked the flight suit because you could see more action in his walk. I loved the thumb up and his smile. The more I researched the more I felt myself being transported to the action so many years ago. I found the image below on news report that talked about all the problems that Neil Armstrong had before even landing. The article by John Blackstone – Apollo 11 crew recalls Armstrong’s nerve-wracking moon landing helped to bring to light the enormity of this task which they embarked . Further research lead me to the horrible thought that the president even had a speech ready should they not make it. How brave these astronauts were as they went into the unknown.

The original design did solidify a couple of things. First the famous saying One Small Step for Man, One Giant Leap for Mankind would be in the base of the sculpture. Even if there is some controversy about the words as reported in this article One Small Step for Man’: Was Neil Armstrong Misquoted? on Space.com by Natalie Wolchover. I’m glad they were said and are a part of our history.

The other given element was that I wanted the pedestal to resemble the moon with footprints from the moon behind him. I love the idea of putting my footprint next to the moon footprint as kind of a “foot selfie,” and I see others doing it as they visit Ethnomir in Russia or the Space Center Houston. I am sure that many will be hesitant to step on the base. I love it when people interact with my art. I prefer things at ground level rather than on a pedestal. My sculpture of the Mad Hatter Tea party “Move One Place On in Evelyn’s Park in Bellaire has children climbing all over it. However, it is up to the discretion of those who receive the sculpture as to how they encourage onlookers. I can also see people wanting to stand next to Armstrong and getting a selfie, Which will warrant standing on the base. Please note: I don’t say this is a sculpture of Neil Armstrong walking on the moon, because … well, he is not wearing his helmet, see below, and that just does not make sense. I just wanted these design elements in the base.

Though I liked the initial pose, doing a bronze sculpture of an astronaut with a helmet as shown in the photo means that the face will not show as well. So we had to figure that out. In the first design, he is in a flight suit, which is different than a space suit. In the first design there is no helmet. The second design things changed. With that change, the client asked that he be in his space suit. I’m going to dedicate some future posts to the conversation of the space suit and won’t go into that a lot here. The Space Center Houston has put me in contact with the Smithsonian who will guide me in this endeavor. There is a lot to discuss about the space suit, for over the last few years finding the “true” reference was a challenge. Luckily the Smithsonian has the real suit and has scanned it. I have the names of the contacts there, and they will help me with all my details. I hope when I talk to them, I can do more of a podcast interview. I used to create a fine art and technology podcast and I would love to revive it with this interview on the scanning and protection of the original space suit. I can’t want to get into the sculpting life size, but first the team needs to raise a bit of money and I’m finishing up a large 13 foot sculpture. I hope to start sculpting on the large Neil Armstrong in May/June 2019. You can follow here or on my instagram, or twitter as I document a lot of my work.

You may also notice that I created the first design digitally. I work both traditionally and digitally and incorporate a lot of technology in my process, which you will see in future “From the artist’s studio” posts. I speak to adults and children about STEM and STEAM, the interdisciplinary educational initiative of Science Technology Engineering Art and Math. I wrote a book called 3D Technology in Fine Art and Craft: Exploring 3D Printing, Scanning, Sculpting and Milling and am working on an update. If you are interested in learning more, here is a key note from Young Women in Math in Science, and another video from a Keynote intro from the Texas Art Educators conference. The first design was created in my computer using the reference and a digital sculpting program called Zbrush.

The new design began when the client wanted Neil in a space suit, and she felt it was important to have a small version of the sculpture to show others. We could have done it digitally, and 3D printed it out, but instead, I went to traditional clay. I sway back and forth, and with each process whether traditional or digital they have their advantages and disadvantages. The first disadvantage was I had to sculpt everything and most importantly his face all over again. It is also hard to put in such detail on a space suit when he is so small at just ten inches. I prefer creating a larger piece as what we call an “artist maquette.” So the new design will incorporate the same base, footprint and saying, but will instead have him walking in that confident intent that I have seen in so many of his images. He will be carrying his helmet, and I will be doing my best to sculpt the many details of that original space suit. With the help of the Smithsonian.

Be sure to follow along.

EDUCATION
If you are not old enough to remember the walk on the moon, take time to ask older friends and family what they remember.