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Uncovering National Geographic

MAGAZINE COVERS: 1980 - 2009

Devhuti
Lakshmi
Nitika
Saikat
Samyuktha
Utsav
Vasuta
INTRODUCTION

• Began in 1888, published by the National Geographic


Society

• Typical early subjects were geology, meteorology,


oceanography, and history of exploration

• 85% of the sales in the US

• Strong emphasis on photography since the 60’s

• The red shirt school of photography

– Subjects wore overtly colourful clothes


The Shock Doctrine

• The cover image is intentionally stereotypical


– “National Geographic's pictures, with rare exception,
were all pretty much of the picture postcard type of
idealistic beauty, rather than photojournalism”

• The cover story breaks the imagery and the story created
by it

• It attempts to de-cultivate the world view the west holds

• The cover makes for a captive audience, and the story


shocks the people out of their opinions
NOVEMBER, 1983
• tries to connect modern
day photography with the
ancient history of paintings.
• painting of the Last Supper
included in the cover
involved Jesus blessing the
bread and wine - serene
scene.
• the King James Version of
Bible clearly says that The
Last Supper was a night
time feast however
Leonardo set his stage
during the day (Look
outside the windows
• Relation with the Story: This 1983 National Geographic
article provides a brief history of Leonardo Da Vinci's Last
Supper, discussing damages done to the painting over the
last 500 years. The most recent attempts at restoration of
the famous mural began in 1977 and have provided clues
to the changes it has undergone and new insights on
Leonardo's techniques. This most recent restoration effort
was completed in 1999.

• Context: The last Supper is a 15th century mural painting


created by Leonardo Da Vinci. It’s basically a picture about
the scene of The Last Suppers which is considered the last
meal taken by Jesus when Jesus announces that one of his
twelve apostles would betray him.
JUNE, 1984
• Taj Mahal at the back -
stereotype of showing Taj
Mahal as India’s identity
• the caps, moustache and
skin color clearly gives a
portrait of an Indian
• the model of train used in
the picture also tries to
connect Indian Railways to
its history of British Raj.
• Relation with the story:From Pakistan’s Kyber pass to
Bangladesh, author Paul Therox and photographer Steve
McCurry travel a monumental rail system where every day
10 million passengers ride 10000 trains to experience India
Railway which is a lifeline for such a populated nation.

• Context:The railway was one of the greatest imperial


achievements of the British raj, and now, a larger system
than ever in a subcontinent divided into sovereign nations,
it still has the powerful atmosphere of empire about it. Its
one of the major contributing factors of India’s prosperity as
a nation since last 130 years.
JUNE, 1985
• large eyes, striking fear
and terror at the same
time
• iconic image, came to
represent Afghanistan for
a long time
• depiction of the country
as a woman
• the state of the “refugee”
NOVEMBER, 1990
• the fallen statue
• man on the statue, sitting
on the chest
• the dual meaning of the
colour red
• the expression of anger
and contempt
• trying to brush away a
past
MARCH, 1991
• taken at a time when there
were military issues in Middle
East
• military balance of power
after Persian Gulf war
• peace talks & Madrid
conference was going on
• textual
– battuta: Denoting iconic
Middle East
• visual:
– conservative, orthodox
women
– expression of fear in her
eye
– glance showing insecurity
– timid, submissive, Arabian
women
SEPTEMBER,
1993
• the author spent nearly 3
months travelling with tribal
group, Rabari
• camel, desert indicate signify
the Great Indian Desert,
Rajasthan, the native place of
Rabaris. Slowly spread across
states, but remained
themselves.
• their endurance, smooth life,
women being treated as
equal, well-bonded as
society– all signs that they
are progressive
• at first glance, would seem
the stereotypical way of
showing India
• but, the cover story breaks
the myth—it doesn’t evoke
sympathy but respect &
MARCH, 1993
• “A Broken Empire,”
• “Statue made of Stone;
symbolic of unrelenting
hardships, inflexibility of
communism ”
• Statue is of a soldier/General
signifying someone in power,
maybe an autocrat.
• “Scarred/burnt face
signifying fighting in a long
war and possibly a crusade
for freedom”
• The Red blindfold implicates
the shortsightedness or even
the blind nature of these
nations when they opted for
a communist regime.
JULY 1999
• “Iranian women yet to taste
liberation”
• “Steeped in Tradition and yet
hesitantly embracing
modernity. The absence of a
burkha, the exposed hands, use
of colours and yet the face is
largely covered.
• “Fearlessness and eye contact
despite having been previously
inhibited”
• “Iranian flag depicted through
the use of the red colour”
• “Traditional dress belies Iran’s
claim for modernity through the
use of the backdrop”
JANUARY 2000
• “Special Millennium
Issue,”
• “Celebrations of Earth
and Beyond...,”
• “Life Beyond Earth,”
• “Rediscovering America,”
• “Tibet Embraces the New
Year,”
• “Enigma of Beauty,” and
“Light in the Deep.”
• The stars on the background resemble a bonanza of glitter
and diamonds, echoing the theme of Celebration
• The typography of “National Geographic” gives the feeling
of motion and also speed.
• It seems as though the letters are moving away from us to
something beyond. Now that can signify
– The cover story: Exploring outer space.
– The millennium issue: Anticipating the future and what
lies beyond the 20th century.
APRIL, 2002
Taken after the US led invasion
of Afghanistan, the
photographer searched for the
girl and found her in 2002
Covers the following:
– FOUND: After 17 Years
An Afghan Refugee’s
Story
– Yucatan Cities Ancient
Maya ruins stud Mexico’s
hill country.
– Maya Mural Researchers
uncover a unique Maya
wall painting.
– Muskoxen Hunted nearly
to extinction for their
meat and coats, the
“bearded ones” again
thrive in the Arctic.
• The first picture was taken at the Nasir Bagh refugee camp in
1984 by photographer Steve McCurry and was the cover
photograph of Nat Geo June,1985. It soon became “the most
recognized photograph in the world”

• Picture #1: The girl seemed tough, curious, perplexed,


somewhat intimidated and defiant.

• Picture #2: As a woman, she seems more hostile, ravaged,


violated, humiliated, defensive yet resigned.

• The essential colour palette of the Picture #1 is quite similar to


colours of the Afghanistan flag (Red, Green and Black). In the
second picture, the lady is clad is blue with faint traces of red
in her scarf as well (American Flag???).

• In the main cover photograph, the figure in blue, with lettering


in bold red and white echo the American Flag colours.

• The blue figure seems to encompass the lone photograph from


all sides, and seems to represent the struggle of the defiant yet
overpowered Afghan surrounded by American forces.
OCTOBER, 2008
• “human-like” face,
caveman
• looking straight at the
reader
• disfigured face,
penetrating look –
searching for something
• story - life and extinction
• “The Other Humans”: the
other race, the “other”
(inferior)
JANUARY, 2009
• adornment with gold
• The True cost of a Global
Obsession: extent of
obsession, covering up
every inch
• closed eyes, subtle smile:
satisfaction
• hands: artificial, crafted
by humans
• striking contrast between
the face of gold and the
human hands : reference
to those who use it and
those who mine it
Over the years…
1888 - 1896 - 1900 1901 -
1895 1899 1903

1904 - 1910 - 1920 - 1959 -


1962
1979
Evolution of Covers

• Early issues were short, technical, and unattractive, with


plain red-brown covers, conveying that it was an
exploratory journal
• As the scope of the magazine grew, the covers evolved
• In the 20’s came about the ubiquitous yellow frame, which
has been a mainstay since then
• The advent of colour photography was the turning point, as
then they chose it as their medium to talk to the world
NAT GEO LOGO
• four different views of the
globe
• covers the entire world
• scientific
YELLOW FRAME
• consistent for a 100
years, now a trademark
• frame of a photograph
• showing the world
through the lens of a
camera
• reinforces the Nat Geo
ideology of showcasing
the “real” through a world
of “surreal” and myths
SYNTAGM

• distinctive yet plain yellow border


• NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC in bold white letters
(Times New Roman Condensed), whatever be the
background. The name is at times obscured by
imagery
• page is always clean, well organized images and
text always in two columns
• “Formata Medium” font - subtle when small,
pleasingly formed when large
SYNTAGM

• photographs depicting myth-shattering, revealing,


and often radical realities which are not known by
the world: always relevant to the times
• usually, the image on the cover is a very
stereotypical or rather unremarkable (frequently
depressing). Yet the cover story pertaining to it
carries a twist to the tale, often ending in a note of
hope
• unusually exotic, first-person narratives, stunning
photos
• people: close up of faces, use expressions to make
an impact
PARADIGM

• range of topics covered: politics, social, science,


history
• analysing the same matter from different points
of view
• paradigms changed with the times, from an
exploratory journal to a microcosm of the world
"To increase and diffuse geographic knowledge
while promoting the conservation of the world's
cultural, historical, and natural resources."
Thank You

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