Whether it be wars, recession, sickness or personal strife the hope for a better tomorrow is omnipresent. The parachute has often been symbolic of such hope because of it’s physical uses in search, rescue and escape.
The history of the parachute can be traced back to Leonardo Da Vinci and a 15th Century sketch of a pyramid shaped structure attached to a man. Da Vinci’s original vision was never realized but the concept of a device to escape tall building fires was first manufactured by Sebastian Lenormand of France. Lenormand is credited with jumping from a tower with a crude 14’ canopy. With the advent of the hydrogen balloon in the 1700’s, the need for an escape mechanism from failing aircrafts soon became apparent. In 1785 French balloonist Pierre Blanchard dropped is dog (equipped with a parachute) from a balloon several hundred feet. The dog is said to have run off with the parachute and never to be seen again. It was only a couple years later that French Pilot Jacques-Andre Garnerin was the first human to jump from a hydrogen balloon over London, England in 1797. It wasn’t until 1884 that the modern parachute was developed. A fabric canopy folded and stuffed into a soft container.
The exhibited parachute an exact replica of a 1961 NAVAIR 13-1-6.2 parachute used for naval search and rescue missions.
hope of a better tomorrow
1961 navair parachute
“hope of a better tomorrow”
“hope of a better tomorrow”
“hope of a better tomorrow”
with case and pedestal
“hope of a better tomorrow”
with case and pedestal
“hope of a better tomorrow”
with case and pedestal
“hope of a better tomorrow”
with case and pedestal
“hope of a better tomorrow”
with case and pedestal
“hope of a better tomorrow” (detail)
“hope of a better tomorrow”
with case and pedestal
“hope of a better tomorrow” tee
“hope of a better tomorrow” tees
compound gallery-
hope of a better tomorrow invitation
