Drawing signed by Raymond Loewy (1971)

In his prime, the great designer Raymond Loewy works with NASA on a spacesuit project.

• Drawing signed by Raymond Loewy for NASA's Skylab project.
• March 14, 1971, United States.
• One sheet, translucent paper.
• 23 cm x 30.5 cm.
• Excellent condition, slight fold marks on the top of the sheet.
• Unique piece.

Like all collectors of autograph documents, certain personalities fascinate me more than others. Raymond Loewy is one of them. But who was he?

Raymond was four years old when the Eiffel Tower was erected in Paris. So, he was born in the middle of the industrial revolution, a hectic time in France. He saw Alberto Santos-Dumont fly his Demoiselle in the Bois de Boulogne, which left a profound impression on him. However, even though he was of French origin, Raymond Loewy (1893-1986) spent his entire career in the United States, where he obtained American nationality in 1938, and died there. The immigrant worker in New York gave birth to a profession, that of a designer, that made him rich and famous.

We owe him many objects that gave Americans, after the Great Depression, the desire to consume, and that became symbols of America. Raymond designed the Lucky Strike cigarette pack, the most beautiful models of the Studebakers car, the Shell and Exxon logos, locomotives, vacuum cleaners and refrigerators, the exterior look of the presidential plane Air Force One, the Coca-Cola bottle and many other iconic objects. It is estimated that 95% of Americans have seen or used one of his creations.

Raymond Loewy was also consulted by NASA to work on the Skylab project, the first temporary space station in the United States (it was occupied between May 1973 and February 1974): layout, colors, lighting, noise levels and all other related factors to human comfort in a confined space, were studied by Raymond Loewy's team. This drawing of futuristic boots, signed by the designer, is a sketch of the astronaut costume.

There are some reproductions of Raymond Loewy signed by him, and some dedications too. But his drawings are extremely rare, even more so with its signature "Loewy", for their heirs and institutions kept them. So it was a great surprise and a real pleasure when I found this little treasure in France.