BLC #2: Cosmonauts | Birth of the Space Age

It’s Autumn, and golden leaves grace the currently dry ground. There is Sun, and surprisingly it is warm despite the shadows that hang above me, threatening to darken. But nothing can stop me having a good time as I’m off on an adventure of knowledge and good company, the Basic Legs Club (BLC). Today we journey to the Science Museum to see the Cosmonauts!

Sadly, as I have not mastered the art of hip photography, and was repeatedly told before I tried taking photos that it was not allowed, none of these images are mine. The images featuring in this entry are all postcards bought and scanned — credits are below each image. Not to spoil this exhibition for anyone who plans on going, but oh boy your eyes are in for a treat! And if I were any good at drawing in the right style and to-scale then I would happily sit there for hours drawing what I could not photograph.

This exhibition was named after the Russian appellation for a navigator of the cosmos, more commonly known as an astronaut, the navigator of the stars. Filled with an exceptional collection of models, drawings, film footage and equipment relating to the Soviet Union’s singular passion for space travel, it is perhaps one of the best exhibitions that I’ve ever visited.

It seems incredible that these pieces, which will remain significant for as long as the human race exists, are only now being given the scrutiny that they deserve. For many of us including myself, the space race translates as Neil Armstrong’s step for mankind and the famous Earthrise photo, but these moments, which are deeply embedded in the collective consciousness, came from the West rather than the East. At that time, the Soviet Union was so closed to the rest of the world that it was easy for us to forget that the USSR led the way, accomplishing many firsts in space innovation and exploration.

I can honestly say that before this exhibition what I knew of space was just the tip of an iceberg. I left with much more knowledge and wonder than before I went in. Though I took away a lot of new, interesting history, it was also a pleasure simply to be able to gaze up at these clunky, metal spaceships and think about how ridiculous they looked, and question how they would even be able to reach the Moon.

I liked the tea set and the bold imagery provided in the exhibition. Good propaganda images meant so much more then than now. Perhaps it’s only now that I realise what an advantage it is to have taken Contextual Studies as part of my Graphic Design degree. There were quite a few pieces of art created for propaganda purposes, and no matter how absurd a few of them seemed, the understanding of why certain shapes, colours and text were chosen told me a far greater story.

My final thoughts on this well put together exhibition, apart from that everyone should go and see it, were how so much hopeful mysticism powered the Soviet Union’s dreams of space exploration and how one person’s dream launched a thousand others.

My train is filled and I wonder if these people had as much fun as I did before boarding.