George Steinmetz Explained
George Steinmetz |
Birth Date: | October 1, 1957 |
Birth Place: | Beverly Hills |
Occupation: | Photographer |
Nationality: | American |
Education: | Stanford University |
Subject: | Aerial photography |
George Steinmetz (born 1957) is an American photographer. His work has been featured in The New York Times,[1] The New Yorker,[2] Smithsonian,[3] Time,[4] The New York Times Magazine,[5] GEO,[6] and he is a regular contributor to National Geographic.[7]
Early life
He was born in the neighborhood of Beverly Hills in Los Angeles and graduated from Stanford University with a degree in geophysics in 1979. He began his career in photography after hitchhiking through Africa for 28 months in his twenties.
Career
He is the author of five books, African Air, Empty Quarter, Desert Air, New York Air, and The Human Planet: Earth at the Dawn of the Anthropocene[8] which feature portfolios of his work in many regions of the world. African Air is a compilation of pictures from ten years of flying over Africa, mostly with a motorized paraglider. Empty Quarter contains images of the Arabian landscape, its people, and its wildlife. Desert Air is a photographic collection of the world's "extreme deserts", which receive less than four inches of precipitation per year. Included are photographs of the Gobi Desert, the Sahara, and Death Valley. "New York Air" is an aerial portrait of New York City with all its boroughs in all four seasons. The Human Planet: Earth at the Dawn of the Anthropocene chronicles how humans have come to be the dominant force shaping the environment and the solutions people have come up with to protect the planet and combat pollution.[9] Images taken on all seven continents over Steinmetz's thirty years of aerial photography explore climate and the natural world, how humans have harvested the biosphere and the footprint humanity is leaving on the planet. The Human Planet was honored with the Gold award for Best Travel Book in the 2020 - 2021 SATW Foundation Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition.[10]
Since his first assignment for National Geographic in 1987, Steinmetz has completed more than 20 major essays for the magazine, including three covers.[11]
He has received many awards during his multi-decade career in photography, including two first prizes in science and technology from World Press Photo.[12] A recent project on large scale food production won The One Club Gold Cube Award[13] He has also won awards and citations from Pictures of the Year,[14] including the 74th Annual POYi Environmental Vision Award,[15] Overseas Press Club and Life magazine's Alfred Eisenstaedt Awards. In 2006 he was awarded a grant by the National Science Foundation to profit from the work of scientists in the dry valleys and volcanoes of Antarctica.[16] The LOOK3 Festival hosted Steinmetz as a keynote speaker in 2011 for his presentation titled "Wild Air".[17]
Much of his work focuses on photographing the world while piloting a motorized paraglider. This experimental aircraft enables him to capture images of the world inaccessible by traditional aircraft and most other modes of transportation.[18] He began using the paraglider in 1997 when a pilot he had hired for a job in Niger quit. He has also begun using a drone for photography.[19]
In 2003 he was the first person to take pictures from a private aircraft in Iran following the revolution.[20]
There is a selection of his work exclusively represented by Anastasia Photo in NYC.[21] His work has also been exhibited in Dubai,[22] the Brookfield Winter Garden in New York.,[23] The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum,[24] The Konica-Minolta Plaza in Tokyo[25] as well as public venues Houston,[26] Denver,[27] Los Angeles,[28] Toronto,[29] Stuttgart,[30] Expo 2015 in Milano, the Triennale di Milano,[31] Horizons Zingst[32] in Germany, twice in the Festival Photo La Gacilly in France[33] and twice at Visa pour l'Image[34] [35] in France.
There are several videos online that feature Steinmetz and his work. He was featured at TED Global 2017 in Tanzania, where he presented his work on Africa.[36] He was interviewed by the Explorers Club and presented his work at the LOOK3 Festival in Charlottesville, the New England Aquarium,[37] and Harvard University. He has videos to preview his books African Air, Empty Quarter, and Desert Air.
Steinmetz was a National Geographic explorer and wildlife photographer on Welcome to Earth, the Disney+ original series from National Geographic that follows Will Smith on an extraordinary adventure around the world to explore Earth's greatest wonders and reveal its most hidden secrets. Steinmetz appeared in Episode 2: "Descent into Darkness" and Episode 3: "Mind of the Swarm".
On Oct. 20, 2023, Steinmetz received the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability’s 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award. The award recognizes alumni who have made highly significant, long-lasting contributions to civil, government, business, or academic communities.[38]
Personal
He lives in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. Steinmetz is married to Lisa Bannon, a writer at the Wall Street Journal. They have three children.[39]
Notes and References
- News: Where Cowboys Fly and Cattle Set Sail: An Epic Food Journey .
- Lauren Collins, Profiles, "Angle of Vision", The New Yorker, April 19, 2010, p. 72
- Web site: History, Travel, Arts, Science, People, Places. Smithsonian. September 28, 2014.
- The Panama Canal Gets Grander"http://time.com/3858370/the-panama-canal-gets-grander/"
- Voyages: Venezuela"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/09/23/magazine/the-voyages-issue.html?_r=0"
- News: Lebensmittelproduktion "Den Anblick eines Schlachthauses finden wir eklig, aber die Klopse schmecken uns" .
- Web site: Photographer George Steinmetz Biography. https://web.archive.org/web/20101116180255/http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photographers/photographer-george-steinmetz. dead. November 16, 2010. National Geographic. September 28, 2014.
- Web site: You searched for george steinmetz - ABRAMS - The Art of Books Since 1949. ABRAMS - The Art of Books Since 1949.
- Web site: Stephanie Bailey. This flying photographer is documenting how humans are impacting the planet. August 16, 2020. CNN. en.
- Web site: SATW. Society of American Travel Writers Foundation.
- Web site: Photographer George Steinmetz Biography - . https://web.archive.org/web/20161019073502/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/contributors/s/photographer%2Dgeorge%2Dsteinmetz/ . dead . October 19, 2016 . National Geographic . June 20, 2020 . en . April 25, 2016.
- Web site: 1997, George Steinmetz, 1st prize, Science & Technology stories . https://archive.today/20120801235754/http://www.archive.worldpressphoto.org/search/layout/result/indeling/detailwpp/form/wpp/start/44/q/ishoofdafbeelding/true/trefwoord/year/1997 . dead . August 1, 2012 . World Press Photo . September 28, 2014 .
- Web site: The New York Times Magazine / Big Food Strikes Back. www.oneclub.org. en. May 11, 2017.
- Web site: First Place - Magazine Picture Editing Portfolio. Pictures of the Year International. September 28, 2014.
- Web site: Winner Environmental Vision Award. www.poyi.org. May 30, 2017.
- Web site: April 25, 2016. Photographer George Steinmetz Biography -. https://web.archive.org/web/20161019073502/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/contributors/s/photographer%2Dgeorge%2Dsteinmetz/. dead. October 19, 2016. August 16, 2020. National Geographic. en.
- Web site: George Steinmetz: Early Impressions . June 8, 2011 . LOOK3 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110612214849/http://look3.org/author/ramchand/ . June 12, 2011.
- Web site: Flying. George Steinmetz. September 28, 2014.
- Web site: Europe. Canon. George Steinmetz: Storytelling With Aerial Photography. August 16, 2020. Canon Europe. en-EU.
- Collins. Lauren. George Steinmetz's Aerial Alchemy. August 16, 2020. The New Yorker. April 12, 2010. en-us.
- Web site: George Steinmetz . Anastasia Photo . September 28, 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20141030134623/http://www.anastasia-photo.com/artist.php?artist=george-steinmetz . October 30, 2014 .
- Web site: arabianEye Dubai Exhibit. Jumeirah. September 28, 2014. https://archive.today/20130127081549/http://www.jumeirah.com/en/Jumeirah-Group/About-Jumeirah-Group/Press-Centre/Press-Releases/2010/George-Steinmetz-exhibition-unveiled-at-Kashta-Gallery/?cm_sp=ZoneTwoNearCrossSellImage-_-2010-_-George+Steinmetz+exhibition+unveiled+at+Kashta+Gallery. January 27, 2013. dead.
- George Steinmetz Desert Air Photography Exhibit "http://thephotosociety.org/events/george-steinmetz-desert-air-photography-exhibit-at-brookfield-place-world-financial-center-winter-garden/ "
- Desert Museum"https://www.desertmuseum.org/"
- Konica-Minolta Plaza 'http://www.konicaminolta.jp/plaza/schedule/2011january/gallery_a_110105.html"
- Brookfield Houston Exhibit"http://thephotosociety.org/events/george-steinmetz-desert-air-exhibit-houston-tx/ "
- Denver Desert Air Exhibit "http://www.denver.org/includes/calendar-of-events/Arts-Brookfield-Exhibits-George-Steinmetz-Desert-Air-at-1801-California/26415/ "
- Arts Brookfield Los Angeles "http://artsbrookfield.com/press_releases/stunning-aerial-photographs-by-george-steinmetz-comes-to-los-angeles/"
- Arts Brookfield Toronto "http://artsbrookfield.com/event/desert-air-3/"
- Web site: Sonderausstellung Naturkundemuseum: Die Natur als abstrakter Künstler. stuttgarter-nachrichten.de. de-DE.
- Expo 2015 "http://www.expo2015.org/en/aperitivo-with-the-clusters--great-photographers--george-steinmetz-at-the-arid-zones-cluster-on-friday- "
- Web site: George Steinmetz Zingst .
- La Gacilly "http://www.festivalphoto-lagacilly.com/l-edition-2015/george-steinmetz"
- Web site: Global Fisheries - Harvesting Marine Wildlife .
- Web site: Big Food .
- Web site: Photos of Africa, taken from a flying lawn chair.
- Web site: Newton. Green. 'Water Rising: The Impact on Humanity' Lecture on April 9. Green Newton. March 9, 2015.
- Web site: 2023-11-07 . Relentless Curiosity, Heights, Camera, Action! George Steinmetz Honored with Distinguished Alumni Award Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability . 2023-11-30 . sustainability.stanford.edu . en.
- Web site: George Steinmetz - The Photo Society. August 16, 2020. thephotosociety.org.