NASA’s Eclipse Art

Credits: NASA/Tyler Nordgren

Tyler Nordgren is a professional astronomer and artist. He holds a Ph.D. in Astronomy from Cornell University where he investigated dark matter. For two decades he was a professional astronomer at the U.S. Naval Observatory, Lowell Observatory, and the University of Redlands. Since 2007 he has worked with the National Park Service to promote dark skies education and outreach, writing the book “Stars Above, Earth Below: A guide to astronomy in the national parks.” As an artist, his vintage- style “Half the park is after dark” posters are on sale in state and national parks across the country.

"I spent a lot of years driving around the American Southwest, visiting many of the state and national parks that will be in the path of this upcoming eclipse. This view captures the feeling of a number of those places I loved so much. I chose the color palette and typestyle to reflect that midcentury moment when so many families were first hitting the road in the 1950s, visiting these places for the first time themselves. To me, the eclipse above and landscape below represent a spectacular world waiting to be discovered anew."

Credits: NASA/Kristen Perrin

Kristen Perrin is a successful African American woman, mother of four, and Senior Multimedia and Graphic Specialist. She graduated from Villa Julie College (now known as Steven University) with a Bachelor of Science degree in Visual Communication, with coursework and certificates from the Johns Hopkins Computer Institute for web development. Kristen has designed digital and physical products with several Fortune 500 companies, the United States Department of Defense, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

“I felt as though the 2023 annular eclipse should be familiar, inspiring, and welcoming to all demographics, depicting the spectacular dynamics of the event being enjoyed by all. The three circles with multiple rings around them add a solar and planetary figurative dimension to the piece. The circles evoke the Moon, Sun, and planets in our solar system, while the rings in turn represent orbital paths as well as the ’ring’ created during the annular eclipse.

Oftentimes there is not enough cultural representation when solar or celestial events take place. Monumental events such as these are not discussed outright in urban communities — but that does not devalue the occurrence. I felt it was important to choose persons that represent a more modern and diverse audience to provide visual inclusion within the design of the poster. This event impacts the world in which we live in and should be shared and enjoyed by all.”

Credits: NASA/Krystofer Kim

Dongjae “Krystofer” Kim is a Senior Science Animator at the Conceptual Image Lab at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Design and Technology from Parsons School of Design and a Master of Business Administration and Master of Arts from the Design Leadership program at the Maryland Institute of Contemporary Art and the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. He combines various art and design disciplines, including fine arts, graphic design, creative coding, animation, and design research to help tell NASA’s story.

Where did you get inspiration for the eclipse poster?

“I was contemplating how the eclipse is an event that is beyond human scale physically and chronologically. It will look differently outside of my myopic view from this planet and it will occur after I am gone for many years to come. With this perspective, I thought of how future space explorations with permanent settlements on the Moon will view this event. While searching for scientific references, I remembered a video piece by our own NASA Goddard media team ‘An EPIC View of the Moon’s Shadow During the June 10 Solar Eclipse’ in 2021 and used it as a visual reference.”

What inspired you to become an artist?

“My inspiration came via Pixar and Ghibli animated films and shows I watched as a child. Despite being a little dyslexic Korean kid, I was welcomed into the world of each story. I found it magical that artists could seemingly create everything from nothing or something fantastical from mundane ideas and objects. And I loved that art enables you to communicate your own ideas as well as learn about others creating common ground.”

Credits: NASA/Michael Lentz

Michael Lentz is an art director and artist fortunate to have worked with respected organizations such as National Geographic, Discovery, and now NASA. He is currently the art director at NASA’s Conceptual Image Lab and leads the NASA Creatives group, where he enjoys the opportunity to combine science and art to create compelling visuals. Michael believes in the power of storytelling and innovation to convey the wonders of the universe.

Where did you get inspiration for the eclipse poster?

“When given the task of creating an eclipse piece, I was intrigued by how different landscapes could change the feel of this celestial event. I worked up a few different environments, but my personal love for forests and mountains led me to the setting I chose. As for style, I was inspired by the simplicity and elegance of Japanese woodblock prints or Ukiyo-e, which translates to ‘pictures of the floating world’ – a phrase I found fitting for an eclipse.”

What inspired you to become an artist?

“My interest in art was nurtured from a young age by my parents, so art has always been a part of my life. College was a time of discovery and growth as I found a new medium to explore – digital art. Despite this, I still appreciate the tactile experience of working in traditional mediums and often find myself in my studio. For me, art is a way to understand the world around us, which makes working at NASA a perfect convergence of my love for art and curiosity about the universe.”

Credits: NASA/Genna Duberstein

Genna Duberstein is an award-winning, Emmy-nominated multimedia producer and graphic designer who specializes in both making and marketing content. Her work has been shown internationally, aired on PBS, and has been featured in many outlets, including The New York Times, Vanity Fair, WIRED, The Atlantic, and National Geographic. She holds a Master of Fine Arts from American University and a Bachelor of Arts from The Ohio State University.

Where did you get inspiration for the eclipse poster?

“During the 2017 total solar eclipse, my parents sent me a picture of themselves, smiling in eclipse glasses and sitting on their front stoop with their dog. It was such a goofy, happy picture, I wanted to capture that same spirit for the poster. I have a dog of my own now – a goofy, happy American foxhound mix – and he proved to be the perfect model for the total eclipse poster. There’s no denying an eclipse can be an awe-inspiring event, but it can be just plain fun too!”

What inspired you to become an artist?

“I can't help it! I've always made things, and I've been very fortunate to have had support along the way. My parents enrolled me in my first art class at four, and they encouraged me to submit work to art contests all through elementary and high school. Portfolio-based scholarships and commissioned portrait work helped me pay for college. To this day, I'm incredibly lucky to have had a career where I can be creative, and I am thankful for all the people who have made it possible.”

Have an idea for how to put your own spin on this poster? This artwork is also available as a downloadable coloring sheet.

Credits: NASA/Tyler Nordgren

In “The Sun and Moon Align with You” poster for NASA, Nordgren – who is a professional astronomer as well as an artist – said that his goal was to capture the experience that can be had by millions of people in cities across the United States in April, while reflecting on the last total solar eclipse that crossed the country in August 2017.

“For 2017, the total solar eclipse passed over so many national parks and natural landscapes with very few cities in the path. So I created a poster modeled after the 1930s ‘See America’ national parks posters produced by the Works Progress Administration to educate Americans about the parks. I figured I was doing the same thing. Now, seven years later in 2024, this time the total solar eclipse is passing over major metropolitan areas. Over 30 million people will be living directly in the path of totality – that's almost three times the total in 2017. So I wanted to make a poster that emphasized what it would be like to see it in one of these cities.

“The poster shows a figure standing before a representative skyline where I used elements of different cities (like certain buildings and bridges) all across the path of totality. Along the underpass that sweeps overhead of our central figure are the names of major cities from every state along totality. It truly is stunning how many people in so many cities will get to see this. 

“Think about being in a sports or concert stadium when the crowd erupts in joy all at once. Now imagine, not just a stadium, but every single person in an entire city all at once at the instant the Sun goes black. This will be a day people will remember and talk about with awe for the rest of their lives. I hope I captured some small part of that.”

Credits: NASA/Kristen Perrin

For her “Through the Eyes of NASA” poster, Perrin – who is an African American woman, mother of four, and the Senior Multimedia and Graphic Specialist on the NASA Heliophysics communications team – said she wanted to show that the eclipse is an experience for everyone.

“Designing the poster to commemorate the total solar eclipse happening on April 8 was an honor. I wanted to highlight the event using people that represented all demographics. This was done so that the eclipse could be recognized as an event for ALL. Using the spherical elements to represent the Moon and some of the planets within our solar system encouraged the overall visual to help the audience see where the eclipse takes place and understand, by the coloring, what would happen. The look of the skyline from the audience point of view was also designed to resemble an eye. This visual honed in on the tagline ‘Through the eyes of NASA’.”