TITUSVILLE, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Local artist Tim Gagnon enjoys working on space art such as his sculpture at Space View Park. "I always dreamed when I was a kid, of contributing to the space program in some way, shape or form," he said.
Ever since he was a teenager, he has been asking astronauts for permission to design their patch worn on uniforms, used to identify a shuttle mission.
"Just lucked out ... honest to God. I was writing to astronauts for 30 years and one time they said, 'yes.'" But the first time, the mission ended up being canceled due to the Challenger disaster, so his patch never made it to space.
However, Tim got another chance years later. "In 2004, John Philips invited me to design their crew patch and that was the first piece of art work that flew."
Now, he's about to get another piece of art in orbit. "It shows the Endeavor circling the earth." He said it's fun, but challenging. "You have to accept the fact that this is not your patch. This is their patch. You can make recommendations as an artist as far as design elements, but it's the crew's decision."
And this isn't just a design on a patch, it's the logo used for the entire mission. "The graphics people have to get it ready for all the needs for NASA TV or print media."
For this artist, persistence paid off. His work, you might say, is "out of this world."
"I'm getting to be part of space program history every time one of these patches launches," he said.
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