posted 11-06-2021 07:37 AM               

quote:

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Originally posted by SXPatches:
I would love to know more about the symbols and symbolism in the design.

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Not much to say really about symbolism. The patch depicts a Russian cosmonaut in an Orlan suit and a U.S. astronaut in an EMU performing an EVA with oversized tools. The idea was to illustrate the assembly and maintenance of the ISS.

The ISS is shown on orbit around Earth with the Moon and Mars depicted to illustrate that the research conducted will enable those exploration missions.

posted 12-12-2021 02:07 PM               

This design commemorates both father and daughter sharing a similar experience of the "beautiful view" of Earth from space. On the left is a gold astronaut pin awarded to Alan Shepard and on the right a silver feather, which is the focal point of the silver astronaut pin awarded to those who fly aboard the Blue Origin spacecraft. I was careful not to copy or infringe on copyrighted material. The gold astronaut pin is on the Apollo 14 patch which is in the public domain. The feather is different from the feather on the Blue Origin logo.

posted 12-24-2021 02:47 PM               

• 432928 A-B Emblem Made In China 10/21 01
  
• 432928 A-B Emblem Made In China 11/21 01

posted 12-27-2021 07:54 PM               

The focus of the patch is the primary mirror of JWST, the Optical Telescope Element, consists of 18 hexagonal mirror segments made of gold-plated beryllium which combine to create a 6.5 m (21 ft) diameter mirror.

In the center of the patch is the launch on an Ariane 5 launch vehicle from the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana. At the top the JWST is shown fully deployed in space. The 20 stars represent the 14 countries and six academic and industry partners involved in this effort.

The logos of the three space agency partners are shown at the bottom.

posted 12-31-2021 04:08 AM               

• 438693 A-B Emblem Made In China 12/21 01

posted 01-12-2022 03:51 AM               

• 438693 A-B Emblem Made In China 01/22 01
  
• 438693 A-B Emblem Made In China 02/22 01
  
• 438693 A-B Emblem Made In China 07/22 01 (Jon B.)
  
• 438693 A-B Emblem Made In China 08/22 01 (Jon B.)

posted 08-10-2022 10:58 AM               

It was well received and for that I'm grateful.

We expect 100K people to come to the Space Coast for Artemis 1. Many, many more will be watching on a device.

My question is this:

Would a patch depicting the launch of Artemis 1 on an iPad be something you’d be interested in? It would retail for roughly $40 and be approximately 8x10 inches in size. Or am I just getting caught up in launch fever?

The smartphone patch:

posted 10-20-2022 08:18 PM               

As soon as it is posted on the A-B Emblem website, I'll share the link.

This patch was inspired by a photo I took in late March of the Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) on the pad from the road to the Canaveral National Seashore. My point of view was northwest of LC-39B.

In creating this patch with Dr. Jorge Cartes, I wanted to imagine the scene at dawn. The waning crescent moon is in the sky, the Sun is just breaking the horizon. To be more attractive and powerful I enhanced the morning colors. The "Artemis" figure from my previous commemorative is ghost stitched into the background, aiming her arrow towards the moon — the destination of Artemis 1.

Fifty years ago I had a similar point of view from just southeast of LC-39A when Apollo 17 was poised for launch. Witnessing the launch of our last moon rocket put me on my career path. I dedicate this patch to the young professionals, "The Artemis Generation," who will make this happen and two my grandsons' generation who will one day see us fly to Mars. I hope they are as inspired by Artemis as I was with Apollo.

posted 06-20-2023 04:24 PM               

This patch is a tribute to the original six U.S. women astronauts: Sally Ride, Judy Resnik, Kathy Sullivan, Anna Fisher, Rhea Seddon and Shannon Lucid. The original patch on the left is a limited-edition commemorative that Jorge Cartes and I created in 2018. It was well received and soon sold out.

Kathy, Rhea and Anna were consultants on the design of this patch. During public appearances they told me they would frequently be asked about the patch and so I approached AB Emblem to make a permanent version.

All were Shuttle astronauts, so the Space Shuttle is depicted launching and on orbit. Bordering the new design is a U.S. Flag with six stars for the "Original 6" women astronauts.

An astronaut pin is illustrated at an angle behind the figures, and the Ancient Greek symbol for 'female' is incorporated into the elliptical shape encircling the trio of trajectories making up the astronaut pin.

The "Vitruvian WoMan" - like figure is divided. The left-side depicts Judy Resnik, a woman wearing shorts and a polo shirt and also the blue flight suit which is common apparel worn on missions during the mid-80s. I chose to honor Judy because she wrote to my daughter and niece ten days before she launched aboard Challenger in 1986.

The right-side is a shuttle EMU spacesuit; a tribute to Kathy Sullivan being the first woman to conduct a spacewalk. Kathy donated one of her original 2018 patches to the Smithsonian to be a part of her official collection.

My initials and Jorge's are ghost stitched below the orbiting Shuttle.

posted 06-27-2023 09:00 AM               

For those not aware Anna was one of the first TFNG class of astronauts that Meredith Bagby interviewed for her book, "The New Guys." She helped Meredith connect with her classmates.

By the way, "The New Guys" is an excellent read.

The project was to recreate the beautiful TFNG class patch painted by Robert McCall. There were two objectives: make it as accurate as possible but also ensure it could not be confused with the vintage original.

On the left is the original patch. It is 3.5 inches wide by 4 inches tall. The shuttle stack is monochromatic. The planetary body is ochre (Mars?).

On the right is the modern replica. You'll note there is greater detail on the SRBs and the orbiter is Columbia representing this class supporting STS-1. The planetary body is now the Moon.

There are no plans to make this commercially available. This was a private commission for the Thirty-Five New Guys.

It was an honor to help make this happen.

posted 08-11-2023 08:01 AM               

In late 2007 in celebration of NASA's 50th anniversary, Jorge and I polished up a design I had seen years before online and in person, known as the "Worm-ball."

Astronaut Mike McCulley wears one on his jacket.

We darkened the blue background, added some shading to the vector and worm font and made the orbital element gold (in honor of the 2008 50th anniversary).

I had a small amount of patches made and shared them with some astronauts in an attempt to gain support for NASA to adopt it. The response from the astronauts I spoke with was positive. (I even had one astronaut present one to Administrator Charlie Bolden.)

Despite the positive personal reactions the effort failed.

In 2018, I saw a NASA meatball on the screen in the Astronaut Encounter at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. I loved how it was lit and the way they shaded the letters and vector to give it depth. It gave me an idea. Why not try to give the ten year old "worm-ball" that treatment.

Then it hit me. The coolest patch I had seen in a long time was the ESA Proxima Patch. It was a simple yet powerful design.

Maybe I could incorporate the essence of depth and movement from the Proxima patch into this one. Imitation being the sincerest form of flattery and all that.

I intended this to be a patch that celebrated all of NASA 60 year history. From the flight of Explorer 1 and Freedom 7 that led to the bold challenge "to land a man on the Moon, and return him safely to Earth." Onto Mars, the other planets in the Solar System, International Cooperation and the promise of the future.

Being a fan of Dr. Seuss I wanted to incorporate the line "Oh the places you'll go." I contacted Dr Seuss Enterprises requesting permission but even after many attempts I never received an answer.

But NASA guards its brand with rules that don't allow for creative interpretations. And I understand the necessity of those rules.

The meatball has specific colors, the worm and meatball cannot be combined. If the worm is used as it currently is on apparel, the type is red or white with specific background colors.

So this patch will never be made.

"It's been a long way but we're here." — Alan Shepard

During the pandemic shut down I had plenty of time to revisit old designs. I really wanted to find a way to get this made.

I boiled down the goal of space exploration to its essence, to EXPLORE.

But what text can I add to the patch that will bring it all together? The answer was provided last year by my friend David Hitt.

During the preparations for Artemis I David offered a quote so perfect! That's it!!!

Thank you Jorge Cartes R for helping make this idea a reality. I am so very pleased to finally announce that AB Emblem has released this patch.

posted 09-30-2023 12:41 PM               

Every patch has a story and every detail included is done so deliberately. Over the last twenty years, I have been honored to work with clients around the globe to help them realize their idea of a patch, an emblem or a logo.

Since 2021, I have been working with Logan Jaeren to curate my graphic work and all of the stories they illustrate.

While we aren't completely finished, (mostly because I have continued to create like a man possessed), we have assembled a couple hundred designs and are preparing to launch a new KSCartist website in October... and that's just the graphic work.

In 2024, we'll be adding paintings, drawings, photographs and memories that help fill in the details of my 50 year artistic journey.

The daunting task of putting this together often reminded me of John F. Kennedy's inaugural address where he said:

All this will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.

posted 10-08-2023 03:28 PM               

Thank you to Logan Jaeren, Jorge Cartes R and especially Lynn Gagnon for their support. To quote Alan Shepard when he stepped onto the lunar surface: "It's been a long way but we're here."

posted 10-09-2023 03:15 PM              

Just a note... your bio page uses a mix of first and third person. (Proof that I read it. )

posted 10-10-2023 04:35 PM               

We still have about 150 more patches to upload and then paintings, etc.

posted 11-03-2023 02:07 PM               

• The Great North American Eclipse 2024

  458145 A-B Emblem 10/23 01 ("Made In China" missing from labels)

  This patch celebrates the next total eclipse that will span Mexico, eleven** U.S. states from Texas to Maine and exit North America over New Brunswick Canada.
  Should of been 13 U.S. states**

  

• Crew Medical Officer

  458146 A-B Emblem 10/23 01 ("Made In China" missing from labels)

  This patch is a special collaboration with Joanna Kerwin, the daughter of former astronaut Dr. Joe Kerwin. His only flight (Skylab I/2) took place 50 years ago and he was the very first American medical doctor to fly in space.

  

posted 11-03-2023 04:31 PM               

Our apologies the entire state of Indiana. It doesn't happen too often but we made a mistake and left off that state of Indiana on this patch.

These are destined to be collectors items. New patches are being made now. If you already ordered and would like a refund please email us.