NASA Forced Out Its First Black Astronaut Trainee, So He Became A Famous Artist Instead
Ed Dwight was a test pilot for the US Air Force in the 1950s, while getting a degree in Aeronautical Engineering. In 1961, the Kennedy administration selected Dwight to be the first African-American to train as an astronaut. His selection drew international media coverage. After Kennedy was assassinated, NASA forced Dwight out of the program by assigning him to a German test pilot school that did not exist, making Dwight resign in 1966.
After NASA, Dwight worked as an engineer in real estate and at IBM, before learning how to operate a metal casting foundry in the mid-1970s, and getting a Masters of Fine Arts. His career in sculpture took off from there. He is noted for his pioneering use of negative space, and has created over 100 public sculptures, all involving blacks and civil rights activists. Today he owns and runs a studio in Denver, Colorado.
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