Portrait of Sergei Korolev, Actionism, Body Painting
1. Sergei Pavlovich Korolev (1907-1966) was a leading Soviet aerospace engineer and the chief designer of the Soviet Union’s space program, which laid the foundation for modern Russia’s space industry.
- Born in Zhytomyr (Ukraine), he initially worked as a carpenter before transitioning into engineering. He studied at the Moscow Aviation Institute and later became one of the key pioneers of rocketry.
Corolev played an instrumental role in developing the first satellite Sputnik, the Vostok spacecraft that sent the first human, Yuri Gagarin, to space, as well as the R-7 ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile). His team’s innovations led the way for later Soviet successes such as Lunar and Space Station programs.
After World War II, Korolev was sent to the Gulag due to political conflicts, where he continued his studies of aeronautics and eventually resumed work in rocket engineering upon his release in 1950.
Korolev’s life and achievements were shrouded in secrecy during his lifetime. Only after his death was it revealed that he had been the mastermind behind the Soviet space program, leading to his posthumous recognition as a national hero.
Text model: dolphin-mistral
Image model: SexyToonFigures
