An Artist Aboard … or the next best thing: Cultural activity as a stabilising social factor in long-duration space missions
- Paper number
IAC-05-A1.P.15
- Author
Ms. Nicola Triscott, The Arts Catalyst, United Kingdom
- Coauthor
Mr. Rob La Frenais, The Arts Catalyst, United Kingdom
- Year
2005
- Abstract
The European Space agency recently commissioned a study (currently being undertaken by the authors) on the Cultural Utilisation of the International Space Station (ISS). One of the immediately drawbacks of the study is the extremely limited number of astronaut hours available on an ISS mission for any 'cultural' activity. But in the case of a long-duration space exploration mission, astronauts could become more time-rich, allowing for non-operational or non-scientific activities. The presence of the artist could have some positive operational advantages, relieving stress and boredom, animating and stimulating the crew, and providing a psychological link to Earth's civilisation, left behind for 3-5 years on a Mars mission, for example. However, the possibility and expense of taking an artist trained as an astronaut on board - as was done on many historic voyages of exploration - lies far in the future. But strategies could be put into place now for collaborations between artists on earth and nominated astronauts who could set up partnerships for artistic and cultural projects in advance. Exposure, during training, to artistic ideas and personal contacts between practising artists and astronauts could lead to the possibility of the nominated crew member to have a 'cultural' function, in the same way as other members of crews on long duration flights could be called upon to provide psychological or belief-based support, in the same way as a ship's padre. The authors suggest that integration of cultural activity and the presence of artists in ground-based facilities may be a suitable starting point for this. The concept could be extended, in the case of long-duration space flight, to artists entering ground-based biospheric enclosures such as the Mars analogue experiments currently in operation in various sites worldwide. Examples will be given of plans for this activity. The authors also have proposed the possibility of social contact between astronauts and selected artists, leading up to those astronauts being 'shadowed' during their training by specific artists of their choice. This partnership could then continue remotely through the communication between the mission and Earth. Indeed an appropriate collaboration could be made through digital media, with astronauts undertaking specific technical activity such as recording their impressions with communications equipment appropriate to technical advances made by the time of the mission. The idea of art made in space is not entirely original, but the concept of integrating art into a mission structure is now being seriously proposed, with the support of the ISS study, for the first time. This paper is new and original. It has not been presented at a previous meeting. Financing and attendance of an author at the IAC at Fukuoka to present the paper is assured.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
IAC-05-A1.P.15.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).
To get the manuscript, please contact IAF Secretariat.