Star Portrait of Helen Sharman - The First Briton in Space

Portrait of Astronaut Helen Sharman, by designer Kyle Dawney, 2018. A circular mirror, covered with matte black vinyl, this artwork shows the constellation of stars above Sheffield on the night that Helen Sharman launched into space, 18 May 1991, becoming the first British astronaut.

This portrait was produced in response to a Historic England competition, titled 'Immortalised', which asked for proposed memorials that artists, architects and designers felt were currently missing from current British memorials. Dawney chose Sharman, responding to controversy around her being overlooked as the first British astronaut in media coverage of Tim Peake. It raises important questions about portraiture, memorialisation, and the representation of women in STEM.