Desert Air: Photographs by George Steinmetz

WASHINGTON (Aug. 16, 2012)—An exhibition featuring images of the world’s deserts by award-winning National Geographic photographer George Steinmetz will be on display at the National Geographic Museum from Aug. 30, 2012, to Jan. 27, 2013.

The free exhibition, “Desert Air: Photographs by George Steinmetz,” which will include breathtaking photographs of sand dunes, human habitation, wildlife and vast expanses of the world’s last great wildernesses, will be in the museum’s M Street gallery. An audio component will feature Steinmetz telling the stories behind selected images.

Inspired by a 1997 assignment for National Geographic magazine on the Central Sahara, Steinmetz has spent the last 15 years surveying and photographing remote and inhospitable desert environments around the globe. To be able to capture his stunning images, he learned to fly a motorized paraglider, the world’s lightest and slowest-moving aircraft. One of his experimental, foot-launched aircraft, which consists of a backpack motor and parachute-style wing, will be on display. The craft allows Steinmetz to fly low enough to the ground to document rarely seen places.

One of National Geographic’s top expedition photographers, Steinmetz has been photographing the remote corners of the world for 25 years. He has received many awards for his work, including two first prizes from World Press Photo, and Pictures of the Year, Overseas Press Club and Life Magazine’s Alfred Eisenstadt awards. In addition to articles in National Geographic magazine, including one on sand dunes in the upcoming November 2012 issue, his work has been featured in the New Yorker and Smithsonian magazines.

The National Geographic Live speaker series will host George Steinmetz on Nov. 27 as part of the Masters of Photography series. More information can be found at www.nglive.org.

Images from “Desert Air: Photographs by George Steinmetz” will also be featured in a new book from Abrams Books on sale Dec. 1, 2012.

National Geographic Museum, 1145 17th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C., is open every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. It is closed Dec. 25. Photography exhibitions in the M Street gallery are free; exhibitions in the 17th Street galleries require an admission fee. Admission is $8 for adults; $6 for National Geographic members, military, students, seniors and groups of 25 or more; $4 for children ages 5-12; and free (reservations required) for school, student and youth groups (age 18 and under). Tickets may be purchased online at www.ngmuseum.org; via telephone at (202) 857-7700; or in person at National Geographic between 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. For more information on group sales, call (202) 857-7281 or email groupsales@ngs.org.

On display in the 17th Street galleries are “Titanic: 100 Year Obsession,” through Sept. 9, 2012, and “1001 Inventions: Discover the Golden Age of Muslim Civilization,” through Feb. 3, 2013. For more information, call (202) 857-7588 or visit www.ngmuseum.org.

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