May 4 – July 17, 2005

A National Geographic exhibit, Pilgrimage: Photographs by Steve McCurry, which transports visitors through the many dimensions of spiritual life in South Asia, opens on May 4, 2005 at Meridian International Center. Through his thoughtful and evocative images, photographer Steve McCurry pays homage to pilgrims and the people who aid them as they search for deeper meaning in their lives through worship and simple daily acts.

The 50 images by McCurry were drawn from work done in India, Nepal, Cambodia, Afghanistan and Burma. From Hindu villagers celebrating the festival of Holi to a nine-year-old Buddhist monk living and working in a monastery, the images on display convey a sense of quiet respect and joyful celebration. Visitors will journey to the desert of Qandahar, Afghanistan, where nomadic women are praying at sunset, and feel the devotion of a young Cambodian girl as water is poured on her head in a cleansing ceremony at Angkor Wat.

McCurry's work has been featured in numerous major magazines around the globe. Many of his images have become modern icons. His famous picture The Afghan Girl is known world-wide and was featured in an exhibition that Meridian and National Geographic sent to Iran in 2002.

The exhibition will open to the public on May 4, 2005 and be on view at Meridian's White-Meyer Galleries through July 17, 2005. Pilgrimage will be highlighted during Meridian's upcoming seminar series entitled "South Asia: Moving Center Stage" and will be the featured exhibition during Meridian's participation in the annual Dupont Kalorama Museum Walk Weekend on June 4 and 5, 2005. Pilgrimage is organized and produced by the National Geographic Museum at Explorers Hall.