Back in orbit: Doug Stewart’s documentary of visionary artist Chesley Bonestell
“Saturn as Seen from Titan” (1944), by Chesley BonestellTo the Planets and the Stars! Filmmaker Douglass Stewart’s tribute to space artist Chesley Bonestell premieres at the Newport Beach Film Festival I think we can call it a labor of love, fueled by persistence and diligence, but also a deep concern that a beloved artist and architect was being forgotten despite his many deeds and accomplishments. I’m referring to Palos Verdes resident Douglass M. Stewart, Jr., who has just completed a feature-length, 96-minute documentary titled “Chesley Bonestell: A Brush with the Future.” The film was premiered on Tuesday, May 1, at the Newport Beach Film Festival. It screens again Thursday, May 3, at 2:15 p.m. Bonestell lived two years shy of a full century, having been born in 1888 and dying in 1986. In his youth there were sailing ships, but he was also around long enough to see men walking on the Moon. The latter sight may have been a dream come true, but perhaps it also signaled a decline as to his own relevance and recognition. Why is that? Because the reality of man in space overtook and replaced the imagining of man in space. Now, let’s step back in time. In 1949, Bonestell…
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