Overview
An unprecedented event in publishing, Stories on Paper and Glass presents an important collection of early National Geographic photographs -- most previously unpublished -- and tells the intriguing inside story of how they came to be. Noted photography historian and curator Leah Bendavid-Val's text examines the collection's development and gives a rare perspective on the National Geographic Society's fundamental and lasting influence on the way we see and understand our world and ourselves.Beginning with the story of the Grosvenor family's impassioned and far-seeing collecting, moving to the Society's innovations in printing and color technologies, and finally to the Geographic's approach to commissioning and editing pictures, Bendavid-Val looks into details behind the dazzling range of themes encompassed by National Geographic photography, from science and industry to exotic cultures and wildlife. Highlighting the treasured Special Collections archive, which comprises close to 150,000 photographs, the book also includes rare autochromes, vintage William Henry Jackson photographs of the American West, and much more. Featuring nearly 300 images and a beautiful design and exquisite printing, Stories on Paper and Glass is a timeless celebration and a valuable retrospective.