NASA's art treasures

The space program has generated amazing pictures of our galaxy for decades. It has also inspired artists to create some memorable pictures of their own. In fact, many have been commissioned by NASA to do so.

This summer, dozens of works from NASA's art collection - from such artists as Norman Rockwell, Jamie Wyet, Robert Rauschenberg and Andy Warhol - are on display at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., in the exhibit, "NASA | ART: 50 Years of Exploration."

Left: Jack Perlmutter's infuses his 1982 oil painting "Liftoff at 15 Seconds" with vibrant colors to capture Space Shuttle Columbia rising from Kennedy Space Center on its third flight into space on March 22, 1982.

The NASA art collection portrays the pioneering spirit of the early flights. Artists who have participated in the NASA art program have enjoyed special access to epic moments, and with their unique perspectives created imagery that no camera could match - from the faces and personalities of the men and women of the space program to NASA technology to the infrastructure of the Kennedy Space Center.

Left: "First Steps," by Mitchell Jamieson, 1963, acrylic, gauze, and paper on canvas. In his silver-colored spacesuit, astronaut Gordon Cooper steps away from his Mercury spacecraft and into the bright sunlight on the deck of the recovery ship after completing 22 orbits of the Earth.

Courtesy Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Licensed by Norman Rockwell Licensing, Niles, Ill.

"Grissom and Young," by Norman Rockwell, 1965, oil on canvas.

NASA loaned Rockwell a Gemini spacesuit in order to make this painting astronauts John Young and Gus Grissom suiting up for the first Gemini flight in March 1965 as accurate as possible.

"Gemini Launch Pad," by James Wyeth, 1964, watercolor on paper.

Wyeth captured both the domed, concrete-reinforced blockhouse built to protect launch technicians from accidental explosions, and the bicycle used by workers to trek to the launch pad.

"Sunrise Suit-up," by Martin Hoffman, 1988, mixed media.

A moment of calm before the frenzy of launch activity is captured with the astronaut's suiting up viewed via a television monitor, the launch pad seen in the distance beyond Banana River.

Eileen Collins, as photographed by Annie Leibovitz in 1999, during training at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. Collins was the first female pilot (of Discovery in 1995) and the first female commander (of Columbia in 1999) of a space shuttle mission.

"Chip and Batty Explore Space," 2001.

William Wegman, known for his photographs of dogs, here depicts two Weimaraners exploring the Final Frontier. One peers out of a space station while the other conducts a spacewalk. NASA loaned Wegman a model of a spacesuit to use in his work.

A closeup of the Weimaraner-astronaut.

"Apollo 8 Coming Home," by Robert T. McCall, 1969, oil on canvas.

McCall imagines the sight of Apollo 8's command module rocket firing to propel the craft out of lunar orbit for its return to Earth.

"Skylab," by Peter Hurd, 1973, watercolor on paper.

Hurd participated in the early days of the NASA Art Program, documenting the last Mercury flight. He returned ten years later to record the launch of the Skylab orbiting laboratory.

"Fluid Dynamics," by Tina York, 1995, mixed media.

York graphically depicts the principles of fluid dynamics, the movement of gases as a solid body passes through them. York researched this concept at California's NASA Ames Research Center while participating in the NASA Art Program.

"Titan," by Daniel Zeller, 2006, ink on paper.

The basis of Zeller's drawing is the intricate surface of Saturn's moon Titan, as recorded by cameras on board the Cassini spacecraft.

"Remembering Columbia," Chakaia Booker, 2006. Booker used her signature medium - rubber - to commemorate the Columbia crew, incorporating pieces of a space shuttle tire that NASA donated into the work. The sculpture resembles a black star, reflecting mournfully upon February 1, 2003, when Columbia suffered an aerodynamic break-up during reentry.

The exhibit "NASA | ART: 50 Years of Exploration" will be on view at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., through October 9, 2011.

The exhibit will then travel to the following museums:

Las Cruces Museum of Art, Las Cruces, N.M. (11/4/2011 - 1/29/2012)
Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, Wis. (4/14/2012 - 6/17/2012)
Figge Art Museum, Davenport, Iowa (7/7/2012 - 9/30/2012)