Week 9 Blog Post

Russian Propaganda
via Giavonni Pallotta 
Growing up my childhood dream was to be an astronomer. I always aspired to be able to look deep into space and see what truly was out there, and seemingly the questions that I have always had were not unique. The idea of space and the question of "is there more" has been engrained within American society. The Space Race brought about high levels of competition amongst nations all over the world which in turn led to great technological advancements and progression in other industries as well, such as art. Through use of various styles of propaganda and media materials, leading governments were able to effectively use space as a means of infiltrating popular culture (Ngo). 

While America and the Soviet Union battled through the Cold War, the Space Race was an instrumental piece of the battle. The Russians utilized propaganda in the same way as the Americans, as a tool to increase nationalist identity. The art work on the left depicts this superhero idea of the astronaut and the almost olympic-like nationalism of being the first to space.

"An American Success Story"
via John Young


Interstellar
via The Collegian.
As aforementioned, this international competition introduced the idea of space and the world beyond-- forever changing the human perspective on "the universe." This is reflected through various mediums, film & television, paintings, photography, music, etc. On the right is a painting created by Alan Bean, the fourth man to walk on the moon. His picture "An American Success Story" not only shows the ties to patriotism but also furthers the connection of space, art, and culture. This is seen in films as well. The film Interstellar grossed 677.5 million dollars in the box office (Box Office Mojo). The movie follows the story of a stranded astronaut and his encounters throughout space and the universe at large.


Sources
“Film Review: ‘Interstellar.’” The Rocky Mountain Collegian, 10 Nov. 2014, collegian.com/2014/11/film-review-interstellar/.

“Interstellar (2014).” Box Office Mojo, www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=interstellar.htm.

Nagy, Attila. “The Fourth Man To Walk On the Moon Also Paints Beautiful Space Art.” Gizmodo UK, www.gizmodo.co.uk/2015/10/the-fourth-man-to-walk-on-the-moon-also-paints-beautiful-space-art/.

Ngo, Denise. “Archive Gallery: How the Space Age Influenced Design.” Popular Science, 3 June 2011, www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-06/archive-gallery-how-space-age-influenced-design.

“Space Race Propaganda: USA vs URSS. A Matter of Posters.” Paola Casoli Blog, 2 Jan. 2015, www.paolacasoli.com/2014/12/space-race-propaganda-usa-vs-urss-a-matter-of-posters/.

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