Beauty, Science Converge at Air & Space Center Exhibit

By Mark St. John Erickson, Daily Press, Newport News, Va.

Mar. 19–HAMPTON — Advanced technology and engineering prowess have been the hallmarks of aeronautical research since before the days of the Wright Brothers’ historic first flight at Kitty Hawk, N.C.

But as a newly opened exhibit at the Virginia Air & Space Center shows, that fertile marriage of science and industry also is capable of creating some stunningly beautiful curves.

In “Aerospace Design: The Art of Engineering NASA’s Aeronautical Research,” curators from the Art Institute of Chicago and NASA scoured the agency’s archives for images and artifacts reflecting the advanced architectural, modeling and design sensibilities that emerged during the first century of flight research in the United States.

Originally opening in Chicago in 2003, the exhibit showed that wind tunnels, plane models and scientific photographs have not only powered numerous technological advances in flight but also produced many objects with an extraordinary aesthetic presence.

Some 100 images can be found at the Air & Space Center in a traveling version of the show, much of which came from the archives of the landmark labs at NASA Langley Research in Hampton.

“A wind tunnel with dramatic lighting is a spectacular thing to look at,” center curator Allen R. Hoilman says. “There’s a real sense of immenseness — of epic proportions — in many of those structures.”

Hot models and fast planes have flowed from Langley’s engineering labs in large numbers over the years, reflecting the center’s role as the nation’s first and still pre-eminent stage for aeronautical research.

“They’re a major player,” Hoilman says. “But before the 1950s, they were the only player in the field. So they’re well represented in the show.”

The Air & Space Center is located at 600 Settlers Landing Road. Hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sunday.

Admission is $9 adults, $7 children 3-18. Call 727-0900 or visit the center’s Web site at www.vasc.org for more information.

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