Where have all the space cowboys gone?

This summer, NASA’s announcement that it was ending its space shuttle program prompted reactions of nostalgia and sadness from many Americans. The idea of American astronauts having to use Russian space transports to reach the International Space Station seems like a retreat from victories won during the Cold War. But for those wishing to relive the heyday of America’s space program, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum recently opened NASA: 50 Years of Exploration, an eclectic gallery featuring artistic interpretations of NASA in its prime.
Walking into the exhibit, the first noticeable feature is a minimalist classical piece called “Sun Rings” by the Kronos Quartet. While the downbeat piece could be a dirge commemorating the end of the shuttle program, it is actually a brooding meditation on the Voyager expeditions of the 1970s featuring sounds recorded by the spacecraft themselves.
The subject matter and styles of the visual pieces range from a detailed painting of astronauts by Norman Rockwell to a spacecraft drawn in crayon that could have been done by a three-year-old. But America is all about diversity, and the variety is captivating enough to keep both adults and the little ones interested—although the latter group has a much better eye at spotting the ridiculousness of the more “interpretive” pieces. Still, many of the exhibit’s artists were able to capture space’s unmatched ability to inspire awe.
Several pieces feature astronauts carrying out their activities aboard spaceships, while others focus on the before and after scenes of the launch and landing process. The artists did a phenomenal job of interpreting the emotional responses of the astronauts, portraying the wonderment of new discovery in the wide, curious eyes of an explorer, and offering a moment of deep reflection in the portrait of an astronaut awaiting a shuttle launch.
Some pieces are better at provoking emotional responses from the viewer. Andy Warhol’s illustration of an astronaut on the moon beside the American flag, reminiscent of MTV’s old logo, is simultaneously a testament to America’s artistic greatness in producing Warhol and its technological achievement in planting its flag on the moon. Another drawing by musician Moby was completed on what looked to be notebook paper, and its simplistic composition rendered it out of place among the other paintings that showed exponentially greater levels of effort.
In a corner stands a pint-sized photograph of an American astronaut taken by Annie Leibovtiz. A photograph in the midst of a gallery full of interpretive paintings, it serves as a striking look at a real face of American exceptionalism. Nearby stood a separate painting of two American astronauts landing on Mars, dated in the year 2019. There is no reminder that the earliest date President Obama has given for a manned Mars landing is 2030.
50 Years of Exploration is hidden in the back of the Air and Space Museum, an unimposing gallery featuring artists that understand the tremendous implications of mankind’s journey into the stars. If NASA acts wisely, it should continue to commission artistic interpretations of milestone events, because as soon as a painting of a depressed astronaut stepping into a Russian transport hits the public, there’s a good chance budget increases may come to the agency. But after witnessing more than a handful of museum visitors turn away from the entrance of the exhibit upon hearing it contained art, let’s hope NASA has a backup plan.