Project:
As a bit of digression before I post the latest WIP, I’ve been re-visiting Piers Bizonys’ excellent book on the making of Kubricks’ 2001, now re-released in a deluxe edition by Taschen (& which I wanted for Fathers Day / or for my birthday…hint hint…) – funnily enough , the USS Enterprise has been cropping up here and there on the internet recently in articles focussing on the scientific credibility of some of the tech’ behind the ship – e.g. : NASA’s “IXS Enterprise” speculative concept, which features a very Enterprise-inspired design for an FTL ship (*FTL=”Faster than Light”) – a design eerily echoing some early concept work from 2001.
And then there’s this item on an underwater “Enterprise” concept to explore the other Final Frontier – the sea.
Clearly the USS Enterprise holds a particular fascination beyond just the nerdy one of liking sci-fi spaceships – like the technology depicted in 2001, and in line with the era that produced it, there are the details of its propulsion system and the theoretical physics underlying it which give it a grounding in the actual developments in space technology at the time.
The miniature and concept work here were worth looking at for some pointers on detailing, which follows a very logical approach, and which adds to the quality of realism which the designers were aiming for – interestingly, my Retro Enterprise concept is a kind of deconstruction of this approach, since I’d set myself the challenge of re-imagining the USS Enterprise as something from the previous era of fantasy “finned” rocketships and flying saucers, but at the same time as a convincingly plausible design.
All Images Text & Images Copyright – Piers Bizony