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F.A.Q. - Frequently Asked Questions
- Why do you think it is important to put art into space?
- What about the philosophical and spiritual aspects of art?
- Who will approve your project? Do you really think someone will let you send a stone into space?
- Why do you paint the Cosmic Stones?
- Aren't stones impractical for the space environment?
- What will the Cosmic Stones project cost?
- Wouldn't this money be better used in other ways on Earth such as helping the poor and hungry?
- Is the Cosmic Stones a commercial project?
- Why should "your" artwork be sent into space instead of works by other artists?
- Stones are very heavy and are not useful for anything in space. Why not use some other material?
- Space is about technology and the Cosmic Stones project appears to be anti-technology. Can you explain?
- Where does the quote 'Our Future: A Space Age or Stone Age?' come from?
Why do you think it is important to put art into space?
As the main purpose of art is communication and, as the idea of putting art into space is both novel and controversial, it is possible for such artworks to become powerful forms of communication about the promises and potential of space development. Like the authors of the quotes found on the bottom of these pages, I share the belief that space development is extremely vital to the future well-being of the human race and especially critical to the sustainability of our current civilization. To maintain the pace of technological and economical progress or perhaps to even survive, our species will need to have access to more resources - mainly energy and raw materials - as there are not sufficient terrestrial resources to maintain the global society that has now come into existence. Such resources exist outside the atmosphere and for human purposes, are essentially inexhaustible. Developing and utilizing these resources offers humanity an optimistic way to sustain and maintain our current civilization. This is called the Space Option and the realization of the Cosmic Stones project and other cultural acitivies in the space environment expands humanity's space endeavors in new directions and may this help to open the space frontier and enable humanity to embrace this option.
See also:
Choosing A Space Age Or A Stone Age
The Space Option: A Precis
Why Space Art? = Why Space?
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What about the philosophical and spiritual aspects of art?
Of course, these aspects are also very important and powerful. Humans have been contemplating the starry skies since their beginning. Art with "cosmic" content has the possibility to connect with some of the deepest desires and dreams shared by people of all cultures and of all epochs. The "awe" factor of confronting the cosmos on a personal level goes really deep into the spiritual dimensions. The fact that it is now possible for individuals to have their own personal space program -whether as an artist or as a space tourist - is an incredible new development in manifesting these desires and spiritual dimensions in the realm of reality.
Specific to the the Cosmic Stones, I believe the process of natural formation endows the Cosmic Stones with a particular spiritual quality that relates to an archetypal consciousness of form. Natural forms contain a sublime sense of numinosity - the mystical and spiritual power of the elemental forces of nature that are embodied in an object.
By isolating the stones from their natural environment and selecting them to become artworks, as an artist I have effectively, although momentarily, altered their destiny as normal stones. Through the application of my microcosmically inspired painting technique I have attempted to expose the inner, numinous aspects of these found and naturally formed objects. By pointing them into the direction of the cosmos by identifying and accessing launch possibilities that will take the stones into micro-gravity environments and beyond, I have added another cosmic dimension that makes them Cosmic Stones.
You can read more about the spiritual dimension here.
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Who will approve your project? Do you really think someone will let you send a stone into space?
The Cosmic Stones project does not depend on the approval of any one person or the permission of any particular institution for it to become a reality if the space mission meets all of the requirements. There are a number of agencies and organizations with the programs and the capabilities to launch the Cosmic Stones into the space environment and I have studied their procedures and requirements. However, the ultimate jury will be the general public. If the ideas embodied in the project do not seem relevant or if the artworks are not attractive and cannot be sold, then the project may not develop very far. I believe the initial goals are attainable.
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Why do you paint the Cosmic Stones?
The first answer to this question is that I am a painter and I have been making paintings for more than 40 years. This is what I do as an artist. Since the early 70's, I have been using a painting technique that has been inspired by my insights in the microcosmos. I have utilized this technique in both an abstract way as well as in a realistic way to portray my particular artistic interests and directions - both on two-dimensional surfaces such as canvases as well as on three-dimensional objects including stones. As far as stones are concerned, I select them from their natural environment and transform them into space art objects Cosmic Stones by metaphorically revealing their inner nature and integrating them into my personal space art program.
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Aren't stones impractical for the space environment?
Quite the contrary, stones obviously exist naturally in outer space be they asteroids or as rocks like we have seen on the moons and planets we have visited in our solar system. As the Cosmic Stones come from Earth and their form has been mainly shaped by the flow of water they are will be in obvious contrast to the stones and rocks in other celestial locations void of water. As far as space environments such as the ISS, the space shuttle or other space habitats are concerned, the Cosmic Stones seem to be particularly suitable. They are solid, inert, inorganic, and have a smooth rounded form that should not pose and integration problems. The painted surface imparts a tactile quality that may be positive for long-term human missions. Psychologically, as the Cosmic Stones would be mementos or keepsakes from Earth, they would be objects that strongly relate one to their home planet. The fact that the Cosmic Stones have actually made it into space will say a lot about the future of humanity's space endeavours.
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What will the Cosmic Stones project cost?
It is difficult to put a monetary figure on the total cost of the project as each development is accompanied by its unique realization expense. The initial goals of placing the Cosmic Stones in weightless environments such as drop towers and parabolic flights are quite reasonable. A parabolic flight can be booked for just € 3000. Sending a Cosmic Stone to the International Space Station my cost approximately €100,000 depending on the services required. Of course there is a direct correlation to the weight of the Cosmic Stones and the cost of any eventual space launch.
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Wouldn't this money be better used in other ways on Earth such as helping the poor and hungry?
As I stated above and in a number of other publications, I believe opening the space frontier is the most optimistic way to make the lives of the poor and hungry much, much better. This is the Space Option concept. One may disagree with this approach if they believe they have a better solution to some of the problems that humanity currently faces. On more practical terms, the Cosmic Stones project has its own dynamic based on the possibility of sending these art objects into space. Without this dynamic I could not possibly raise the necessary funds and as such, I would not have the money to donate to the poor and hungry .
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Why should "your" artwork be sent into space instead of works by other artists?
I do not consider my project in any way as a competition with other artists' projects for space. Actually, the more art realizations that take place in the space environment will have a positive effect on the Cosmic Stones project - and vice versa, I hope. There are a number of ways to get art works into space. Those projects that depend totally on the cooperation and financial participation of the space agencies may be more difficult to realize and the selection process more severe. That is a choice the artist must make. I have decided to stay as independent as possible so that the chances of realization are more under my control. I believe the future of space development, if it is to be successful, will be a direct result of private enterprise. Already we have seen that it is possible to achieve sub-orbital flight with innovative and inexpensive technologies. In my career as a space artist, I have managed to successfully launch two art projects into space. The first, the Cosmic Dancer Sculpture was indeed a personal project, the second, Ars Ad Astra: The First Art Exhibition in Earth Orbit enabled the artworks of twenty other artists to be flown into space. As that took project place more than ten years ago, I felt it was time to put some more of my own art into space.
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Is the Cosmic Stones a commercial project?
Yes, in the sense that I take full responsibility for it's funding through the sale of Cosmic Stones and related art products such as images and multimedia products. Furthermore, the successful realization of a 'commercial' project such as the Cosmic Stones will be an example of one possibility of future space development. If I make a significant profit, and the value of the Cosmic Stones that have been purchased by my supporters increases, then this may stimulate other private endeavours that will have a positive effect on the developing space economy.
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Stones are very heavy and are not useful for anything in space. Why not use some other material?
Actually, I am not interested in something that looks like a stone but in reality is not one. That would be like having an imitation Rolex watch. The Cosmic Stones are by nature heavy, and that is part of the message of this project. If I can bring together the right conditions that will enable one of more Cosmic Stones to be launched into space in spite of their obviously qualities of inert mass and in-utility then this will be a powerful message of what is possible to achieve in the space environment.
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Space is about technology and the Cosmic Stones project appears to be anti-technology. Can you explain?
Although we live in a scientifically and technologically dominated society and space is probably the ultimate expression of our species' technological prowess, I believe space development needs other cultural dimensions. 50,000 years ago humans began to portray their understanding of the universe in which they found themselves by painting on the walls of caves. Painting on the same substrate at the critical moment of developing a space program that may be the key to our species ultimate survival seems appropriate to me.
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Where does the quote 'Our Future: A Space Age or Stone Age?' come from?
In 1995, together with my co-author Marco C. Bernasconi, I published an article in Space News called "Choosing A Space Age or a Stone Age".
The philosophical implications mentioned as well as the title of this article was likely inspired by our colleague Mark Hempsell who published an article in 1989 called: "Space Industrialization -- A New Perspective" which ended with the statement:
"We face a choice of the type of future that we leave to posterity: a stone age or a space age. If it is to be a space age there is a need to act now with much greater vigour that is currently being shown." Mark Hempsell (1989). Space Industrialization -- A New Perspective. Spaceflight 31[07], 224-227.
In the article Hempsell refers to the global modelling work of Anthony R. Martin who observed at the BIS Space 1984 Conference that:
"the modelling... pointed to only two alternatives for mankind, either a space age or a stone age." However, the published version of this presentation does not contain the above quote. AR Martin (1984). Space Resources and the Limits to Growth. JBIS 36[06], 243-252.
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