First Fleet is an enduring photographic portrait of the early years of NASA's Space Shuttle. Between 1981 and 1986, the Shuttle program went from an R&D program to a fully operational commercial space program. Those early years were filled with excitement and optimism about the future of space travel. With every launch I witnessed, it felt like I had a front row seat to the future. It was this excitement I hoped to capture in these photographs. First Fleet is my way of paying homage to all the men and women who built and flew the Space Shuttle. And how they inspired me to live a creative life.
John A. Chakeres received his Bachelor of Fine Art degree from Ohio University in 1977 in both photography and printmaking. He has published three books of his photographs, Traces: An Investigation in Reason, 1977, D’art Objects: A Collaboration. 1978, and Random New York: An Unscripted Walk, 2008. Chakeres’s current photographs explore the concepts of formalism and found objects in context of photography. His photographs have been included in numinous exhibitions and publications. They can also be found in a number of permanent collections including the Museum of Modern Art, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Museum of Contemporary Photography, Southeast Museum of Photography, Monterey Museum of Art, and Tweed Museum of Art. He has also taught photography, printmaking, and digital imaging at Ohio University, Columbus College of Art and Design, and Columbus State Community College.
