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Neil Armstrong
5 Aug 1930 – 25 Aug 2012
The future washes over us like a flood, carrying the past farther away from us with every moment. In 1969 I watched Man's first landing on the Moon on TV, but took time from it to go outdoors to look at the real moon in the real sky. As I gazed, real men walked on its surface. The present wasn't nurturing, but I knew the future would be better. What I could not foresee was a time when the men who were on the Moon would grow old and die. That unforeseen future has finally arrived, and I look back on the past and wonder if the dreams weren't better, after all.
The painting was begun in 1970, I think, but obviously never finished. Thinking of a way to paint over Buzz Aldrin with the golden colour of Armstrong's helmet glass – without obliterating him – was more than I could work out... among other difficulties. I had hardly any experience with painting at the time, and have gained little since. The original canvas is 14 inches by 18, and was painted with oil. I was never my intention to show it, but posting the unfinished work on FaceBook seemed like the appropriate response to Neil Armstrong's death.
5 Aug 1930 – 25 Aug 2012
The future washes over us like a flood, carrying the past farther away from us with every moment. In 1969 I watched Man's first landing on the Moon on TV, but took time from it to go outdoors to look at the real moon in the real sky. As I gazed, real men walked on its surface. The present wasn't nurturing, but I knew the future would be better. What I could not foresee was a time when the men who were on the Moon would grow old and die. That unforeseen future has finally arrived, and I look back on the past and wonder if the dreams weren't better, after all.
The painting was begun in 1970, I think, but obviously never finished. Thinking of a way to paint over Buzz Aldrin with the golden colour of Armstrong's helmet glass – without obliterating him – was more than I could work out... among other difficulties. I had hardly any experience with painting at the time, and have gained little since. The original canvas is 14 inches by 18, and was painted with oil. I was never my intention to show it, but posting the unfinished work on FaceBook seemed like the appropriate response to Neil Armstrong's death.
Category All / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 800 x 989px
File Size 276.8 kB
I painted Armstrong in 1970, more or less. Since then, I've kinda lost interest in astronauts. I only did one recently -- Story Musgrave -- because I was asked to provide an illustration for his guest appearance at this year's Worldcon. Otherwise my thought would be, "who the heck is Story Musgrave?" I did know the name -- a weird name like that is hard to forget -- but otherwise he was a cipher in a spacesuit to me.
"Story Musgrave" sounds like the name of an anthro character...
I was around in '69 also, I remember that night well. Someday I'll have to dig out my 8mm film where I double exposed a paper cut-out lunar lander 'descending' onto the moon's surface, followed by a friend wearing a swim mask descending the ladder from our above-ground swimming pool - who's then attacked by moon monsters (the rest of us).
I was around in '69 also, I remember that night well. Someday I'll have to dig out my 8mm film where I double exposed a paper cut-out lunar lander 'descending' onto the moon's surface, followed by a friend wearing a swim mask descending the ladder from our above-ground swimming pool - who's then attacked by moon monsters (the rest of us).
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