The space age

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On Saturday 28 August, 1999, against a background of puffing industrial plumes, a pinkish-blue sky, and the sound of bongo drum beats, Aleksandra Mir, dressed in a smart white dress and with American flag in hand, scaled the side of a moonscape of sand dunes and makeshift craters to become the first woman on the moon. The performance First Woman on the Moon marked the beginning of Mir's exploration of outer space as she staged a moon landing by transforming a Dutch beach into the moon's surface using the help of local people and heavy machinery. Mir's projects offer her own take on popular cultural myths and historical events, by combining religious iconography with NASA imagery or symbols of space travel. Her work reflects on these events that span half a millennium of human―mostly male-dominated―quest, transforming or deconstructing them into a make-believe world of her own. Mir resists and modifies; her work creates its own authenticity and truth. The Space Age consists of seven fold-out posters and a text by Martin Herbert. The publication coincides with the exhibition at M – Museum Leuven which encompasses fourteen years of Mir's career (1999–2013). Copublished with M – Museum Leuven ContributorsMartin Herbert