Holder of 11 world records in space and astronautics, as well as numerous national and international honors, Alan Bean has had a most distinguished peacetime career. His awards include two NASA Distinguished Service Medals, the Yuri Gagarin Gold Medal and the Robert J. Collier Trophy. While serving as an Apollo XII astronaut, he became the fourth of only 12 men ever to walk on the Moon. As the spacecraft commander of Skylab Mission II, he set a world record: 24,400,000 miles traveled during the 59 day flight. He has also launched himself successfully into a new career as an artist.

When he wasn't flying, Alan Bean always enjoyed painting as a hobby. Attending night classes at St. Mary's College in Maryland in 1962, Alan Bean experimented with landscapes. During training and between missions as a test pilot and astronaut, he continued private art lessons. Space voyages inspired his artist's eye and talent enabled him to document impressions of the Moon, which would be preserved later on canvas. His art reflects the attention to detail of the aeronautical engineer, the respect for the unknown of the astronaut and the unabashed appreciation of a skilled painter.

The space program has seen unprecedented achievements and Alan Bean realized that most of those who participated actively in this adventure would be gone in 40 years. He knew that if any credible artistic impressions were to remain for future generations, he must paint them now. "My decision to resign from NASA in 1981 was based on the fact that I am fortunate enough to have seen sights no other artist ever has", Bean said, "and I hope to communicate these experiences through art".

Bean's book, Apollo: An Eyewitness Account, which chronicles his first person experience as an astronaut in words and paintings, was received with critical and popular acclaim upon its publication in 1998.