Explorers / Astronauts

Top 12 Alan Bean Quotes (PAINTING APOLLO)

Top 12 Most Famous Alan Bean Quotes – the 4th Man to Walk on the Moon

“I don’t think we were thrown out of the Garden of Eden. Just look around. We’re still in it, particularly when you compare the earth with the moon. The moon has no plants, no life, no water, no animals, no nothing.”

Alan Bean
I feel like there's too many paintings left unpainted that I just don't want to take the time away.Pin
I feel like there’s too many paintings left unpainted that I just don’t want to take the time away.
Everyone is trying to reach for their own stars, and all of those stars aren’t light-years away.Pin
Everyone is trying to reach for their own stars, and all of those stars aren’t light-years away.
It's hard not to be excited when you're going to find a way to land on the moon.Pin
It’s hard not to be excited when you’re going to find a way to land on the moon.
Frequently on the lunar surface I said to myself, 'This is the Moon, that is the Earth. I'm really here, I'm really here!'Pin
Frequently on the lunar surface I said to myself, ‘This is the Moon, that is the Earth. I’m really here, I’m really here!’
I feel blessed every day when I'm working on these paintings… the first artist to ever go to another world and try to tell stories that people care about.Pin
I feel blessed every day when I’m working on these paintings… the first artist to ever go to another world and try to tell stories that people care about.
But I'm the only one who can paint the moon, because I'm the only one who knows whether that's right or not.Pin
But I’m the only one who can paint the moon, because I’m the only one who knows whether that’s right or not.
But I found that being an artist and doing accurate work is very difficult.Pin
But I found that being an artist and doing accurate work is very difficult.
History has spurts and then is steady, and then maybe even backing up a step, and then forward again.Pin
History has spurts and then is steady, and then maybe even backing up a step, and then forward again.
As the centuries unfold, millions of artists will live on the moon and paint the moon and Mars as we go out into the universe.Pin
As the centuries unfold, millions of artists will live on the moon and paint the moon and Mars as we go out into the universe.
Eventually there are going to be cities in space.Pin
Eventually there are going to be cities in space.

“Apollo is the greatest adventure of all humankind, and it needs to be recorded in every way possible for future generations in books, in movies and on television. … I’m an artist. That’s the way I care about things. Maybe 200 years from now, someone will say, ‘I’m glad he did that.'”

Alan Bean
YouTube video

Alan Bean Short Biography

Born 15 March 1932, in Wheeler, Texas, United States, Alan LaVern “Al” Bean was an American astronaut and the 4th person to walk the moon.

Bean graduated from the University of Austin in 1955 with a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical Engineering. He earned his naval aviator’s wings in the following year and went on to become a fighter pilot. 

After graduating from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in 1960, Bean became a test pilot. 

Alan Bean became a member of NASA astronaut group 3 when he was recruited by NASA in 1963. 

In November 1969, Bean was launched to space aboard the Apollo 12. Bean was the Lunar Module Pilot for the Apollo 12 mission, the second moon landing.

During his NASA career, he commanded the second crewed Skylab mission, Skylab 3. The mission lasted 59 days in July – September of 1973. The purpose of the mission was to board the United States space station and conduct various experiments. Under Bean’s command, the mission became a success.

Bean retired from the Navy in 1975, he stayed and continued to work for NASA as a civilian. He then headed the Astronaut Office’s Astronaut Candidate Operations and Training Group at the Johnson Space Center.

After 18 years of service, Alan Bean retired from NASA in 1981. During his retirement he dedicated most of his time to painting, a lot of his paintings were focused on the moon, for which he used real moon dust.

During the 40th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission, Bean displayed his paintings at the National Air & Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution

Further Reading:

Here are the best Alan Bean quotes so you can continue to be inspired to push boundaries and find the beauty and art in everything.  

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Top Alan Bean Quotes (PAINTING APOLLO) - Gracious QuotesPin
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