Sunday, March 10, 2013

Life in Color: National Geographic Photographs curated by Annie Griffiths

Staff at the National Geographic Society have catalogued, captioned and organized "nearly 12 million photo images in a system that allows a photo editor to wander through more than 100 years of extraordinary images." From these, Annie Griffiths (one of the National Geographic's first female photographers) selected over 200 breathtaking images for a coffee table collection: Life in Color.

Looking through this book is like a balm for the soul. Beauty is celebrated in all of its guises, all around the planet. Text is minimal, mostly quotations from poets and artists on the subject of colour.

Colour is the place where our brain and the universe meet. -- Paul Cezanne

Of all of god's gifts to the sight of man, colour is the holiest, the most divine, the most solemn. -- John Ruskin

Colour is a vital necessity. It is a raw material indispensable to life, like water and fire. -- Fernand Leger

Most of the images are available for purchase from the National Geographic Art website.

3 comments:

Claire G said...

Ka-ching! Carol just borrowed this book from our library down here. She would identify with your comment about a balm for the soul - often she chooses photographic books for that very reason.

Lindy said...

I need a different kind of balm today because a fall on ice has left me with an injured wrist (and one-handed typing). Bring on the arnica!

Claire G said...

Oh no!