For the last edition of The Kick-About, we orbited the artworks of Lee Krasner. This week, we’re satelliting an actual satellite – humanity’s first! Launched on 4 October 1957, Sputnik wasn’t just a metal sphere in orbit – it signalled the beginning of the Space Age, a global pivot towards exploration, ingenuity, and the unknown. Enjoy tracking our own explorations in this latest collection of new works made in a short time. For all previous editions of The Kick-About, go here.
Phill Hosking
“I straight away envisioned the orb in a deep space battle against the elements at breakneck speed, rattling and vibrating with all that the ether could throw at it, so small and insignificant in the dark. So then, an afternoon fashioning a mini Sputnik from scavenged materials and a hastily made black box, I threw all I could sweep up from my garage floor at it, handily lit by a harsh spotlight providing evidence of a distant solar flare. I took the time to make the synth soundtrack with a moody, pulsating Sci Fi feel—great fun!”
phillhosking.co.uk / phill_hosking
James Randall
“Sputnik is about isolation and a short fast lifespan!”
Jan Blake
“I was 10 years old when it was launched and my imagination was compelled by this intriguing adventure. My uncle who had been a draughtsman in an architects office had been showing me how to draw the moon and to shade things to give them a three dimensionality. He could draw a perfect circle without using a compass. I was fascinated and I see now how this experience fed into my fascination with the circle and spirals. I wanted to be that Sputnik! I found some early sketches that I had made for the first huge hanging in a public space. There I could see my compulsion for the circular and airborne and the luminous…”
Ashley
“I really couldn’t find the right way to express my idea for this prompt and as you can tell by my ink brush drawings, I wasn’t very successful... However, I remembered something else. Sputnik 1 (October 1957) was followed a couple of months later by Sputnik 2 only this time it carried a dog, Laika, into space, the first living creature to be sent into space. My second piece of artwork is dedicated to Laika. She was a gentle mixed breed dog rescued from the streets and over the months prior to the launch, she was trained to sit still for long periods of time. The Soviets knew that she would not survive the flight but they had supplied enough food and oxygen for 10 days. Nearly 50 years later it was revealed that she only survived for a matter of hours, due to extreme stress and overheating, having been subjected to temperatures of over 100 Fahrenheit. This is my simple tribute to Laika!“
Kerfe Roig
“When I saw that the prompt this time was Sputnik, I immediately thought of a graphic novel by Nick Abadzis that I read a few years ago—’Laika’. It tells the story of the dog Russia launched into space as a way to score propaganda points in the Space Race with the U.S. Because of Khruschev’s demands, there was no time to work out a re-entry plan for Laika. She was considered collateral damage to the political agenda, as so many living things are, it seems, and have been throughout human history. The story continues to haunt me, especially after viewing a photo of Laika strapped into the tiny space she occupied inside Sputnik II. I like to think her spirit joined the celestial dog spirits who are said to guide souls on their journey to the afterlife. That was the inspiration for my collages and poem.”
Laika
1
my shadow is a spirit
whispering like stars reflected on water
2
my shadow is older than time
an absence unfolded into a celestial map
3
my shadow bears witness, shines
its light inside the river of souls
4
my shadow shapeshifts beyond
sorrow, grows wings, enters dreams
5
my shadow has no definition
but its capacity is infinite
kblog.blog / methodtwomadness.wordpress.com
Vanessa Clegg
“A couple of collagraph prints with graphite Sputniks. I read that when making Sputnik the radio transmitters heated the room so much that they had to keep the windows open. This turned them blue with the cold—so that, and their white coats and gloves, was what I sort of used for the figure. I remember witnessing Venus passing across the face of the moon so that was also included. Sputnik was such an important moment in space development that the second image sees it straddling the earth!”
vanessaclegg.co.uk / vanillaclegg
Phil Gomm
“I ordered a large steel ball from one of those companies that provide fixtures and fittings for grand-looking railings and gates. I knew I was going to have some fun with sparklers to evoke the spines of this famous satellite and I needed something I could ‘strike’ without fear of burning the house down. I captured some fun ‘re-entry’ vibes in some of these, but there is something rather implacable about that mysterious orb, which puts me in mind of Gort from The Day The Earth Stood Still...”
philgomm.com / behance.net/Phil_Gomm
Lewis Punton
“Earlier this year I read Orbital, a book by Samantha Harvey exploring the experiences of six astronauts and their relationships to Earth. Since then, I’ve found myself developing a fascination with all things outer space, meaning that Sputnik was a very welcome Kick-About prompt indeed. To create this collection of space race style images I shot photographs directly reflecting the midday sky via metallic card, causing the glare of the sun (when tweaked in post to bring about some pace and blur) to elicit the idea of a tumbling spacecraft capturing its final images of outer space as a terrified space traveller watches the burning sun bounce from the metal surfaces of their ship’s porthole…“
Gary Thorne
“Having been away, it’s time now to reset and think KA. Each weekend my dear friend Wojtek lands in Kent to garden and generally escape the city business life, so I return discovering delightful arty treats. These both fit the bill for the KA prompt Sputnik, so I’m extra pleased, enjoy—and thank you WT for all and more.”
And for our next muse, an artist who redefined weaving in the mid-20th century—Lenore Tawney.
Red's Kingdom 
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