Through the Yellow Frame

A preview of National Geographic Society’s 150 priceless vintage prints from its treasure trove.

The rubble falling away from King Tutankhamun’s newly discovered tomb, Sharbat, the Afghan Girl’s haunting green eyes or iridescent jewel scarabs. Who knows which National Geographic image is imprinted on your mind. Come 17 September, the National Geographic Society will display 150 archival prints at the Steven Kasher Gallery in Chelsea, USA.

This will be the first ever fine art ex­hibition of archival images, some of which have never been published in the magazine. Documenting mo­ments in archeological, cultural and natural history, these have been se­lected from some 11 million imag­es. The B&W exhibition highlights the legacy bequeathed by a dozen pi­oneering photographers who first hoisted the iconic yellow frame to an artistic zenith. This includes greats like Hiram Bingham, the American historian, explorer and politician who discovered Machu Pichu, the an­cient Inca citadel; and Vittorio Sella, one of the world’s foremost Alpinists. Sella, who lugged bulky and frag­ile 30-40 cm photographic plates up the Alps, even has a peak named af­ter him. There’s also Joseph F Rock, whose botanical portraits inspired James Hilton’s fictional vision of Shangri-La. These piece-of-histo­ry prints are expected to be priced at $3,000-10,000. But this armchair glimpse is free. Savour it.

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