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Indepth Arts News:
"Artistry of Space: The NASA Art Program"
0000-00-00 until 0000-00-00
Artrain USA
Ann Arbor, MI,
USA United States of America
Artrain USA, the nation's only art museum on a train, is
traveling America's railroads carrying Artistry of Space: The NASA Art Program
, an exhibition of artworks from NASA and the National Air and Space Museum
art collections. This exhibition, which launched in Washington, D.C. in July,
1999, is traveling through the Southeast and Gulf states in 2000; in 2001,
the tour will visit the Midwest; and in 2002, the exhibition will traverse
the West Coast and Pacific Northwest states. The Artistry of Space national
tour is sponsored by DaimlerChrysler with transportation for Artrain USA
provided by the nation's railroads.
Artistry of Space is a collection of 78 paintings, prints, drawings and
multimedia works from the NASA Art Collection that reflects the energy and
excitement of space exploration. From the excitement of the initial effort
to put a man on the moon to recent endeavors such as the Mars Pathfinder missi
on and the Hubble Space Telescope, artists such as Peter Max, Robert
Rauschenberg, Norman Rockwell, Andy Warhol and James Wyeth have captured the
spirit of space exploration. The result is a rich visual record of the NASA
Space Program.
From the inception of NASA's Art Program in 1962, NASA has invited more than
250 American artists to witness firsthand the U.S. space missions and to
interpret space flight through their art. In a creative melding of art and
science, the artists, responding to space exploration on emotional and
spiritual levels, have documented the work of engineers, astronauts and
scientists. Sketches capture the immediacy of unfolding events, while
larger, finished works created in the artists' studios convey the power of
what they have witnessed.
Artrain USA's mission is to enrich lives and build communities through the
arts. This unique art museum on rails fulfills its mission by bringing
visual art exhibitions and programs directly to communities that do not have
access to museums or collections. As a powerful catalyst, Artrain USA sparks
the formation of local and regional arts councils, bolsters art education
programs and community pride and spurs downtown and depot renovations. Since
its founding in 1971, more than 2.6 million people have visited Artrain USA
in 600 communities in 44 states and the District of Columbia. The Artistry
of Space exhibition will visit more than 100 cities in 40 states during its
three-year tour.
The Artistry of Space exhibition is exciting, because it touches all
generations and gives us the opportunity to bring museum art to the nation,
while incorporating the relationship of art to science and technology, said
Debra Polich, President and CEO of Artrain USA.
Visitors are invited to tour the gallery, take part in an interactive
computer display, visit the gift shop and view Artrain USA's resident artist
and local community artists demonstrating their skills.
New Railcars - Artrain USA has traveled with the same set of railcars since
1971. With the opening of the Artistry of Space exhibition, Artrain USA
showcased three of its five new railcars. These sleek stainless steel cars: a
1949 New York Central sleeper car and 1949 Pennsylvania Railroad twin diner
cars, house the gallery for the exhibition. With these new railcars, Artrain
USA will be able to continue to break ground in art education, to expand its
programming and increase opportunities for people to experience art in a
non-intimidating, encouraging atmosphere within their own communities. In
December, Artrain USA will replace its gift shop/studio car and caboose with
a 1947 New York Central baggage dormitory car and a 1948 Kansas City Southern
end car, respectively.
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