Peter J. Menzel is an American freelance photojournalist best known for his coverage of scientific and technological subjects. His work has appeared in many national and international publications including National Geographic, Forbes, Fortune, Wired, Geo, Stern, Paris Match, Life and Le Figaro. In conjunction with his wife, writer/producer Faith d'Aluisio, Menzel has also published five books including Material World: A Global Family Portrait (1994) and Hungry Planet: What The World Eats (2005). He is the founder of Peter Menzel Photography.

Biography

Born in Hartford, Connecticut

Hartford, Connecticut

Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...

, Menzel became a professional photographer in 1970 and soon began to focus on high-tech stories, including virtual reality, DNA fingerprinting, micromachines and solar cars. But he has also covered more traditional photojournalistic subjects. His work on the Kuwait oil well fires of 1991 ran as a 26-page cover story for German Geo and won a Communication Arts award.

His photographs have been exhibited at the United Nations, the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, the National Museum of Natural History, the Museum of Science in Boston, and Visa Pour L'Image, the annual international photojournalism congress in Perpignan, France.

Menzel and d'Aluisio live in Napa, California

Napa, California

-History:The name Napa was probably derived from the name given to a southern Nappan village whose people shared the area with elk, deer, grizzlies and cougars for many centuries, according to Napa historian Kami Santiago. At the time of the first recorded exploration into Napa Valley in 1823, the...

. They have four adult sons.

Books

Material World
this book is about over 30 families and how they live. Peter Menzel, a 100% smarty, had families from all over the place take EVERYTHING they own and putt it outside of their house and took a picture just, to show how they are different.

Women in the Material World

The 1996 companion volume to Material World, from Sierra Club Books

Sierra Club Books

Sierra Club Books is the publishing division of the Sierra Club, founded in 1960 by then Sierra Club President David Brower. Volumes intended for club members had been published prior to 1960. In addition, books under their name had been published before 1960, but done through already established...

, this book focuses on women from 20 different countries, along with short essays on subjects such as marriage, childcare, and work.

Hungry Planet: What the World Eats

Similar in style to Material World, Hungry Planet presents what thirty families eat in a week through a combination of photographs and essays. Each family’s profile includes descriptions about their food purchases and a portrait of the family surrounded by a week’s worth of groceries. The book shows families from 24 countries, offers essays from Michael Pollan

Michael Pollan

Michael Pollan is an American author, journalist, activist, and professor of journalism at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. A 2006 New York Times book review describes him as a "liberal foodie intellectual."...

, Charles C. Mann

Charles C. Mann

Charles C. Mann is an American journalist and author, specializing in scientific topics.He is the coauthor of four books, and contributing editor for Science and Atlantic Monthly. In 2005 he wrote 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, followed in 2011 by 1493: Uncovering the New...

, and Marion Nestle

Marion Nestle

Marion Nestle, Ph.D., M.P.H., is the Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University, in the department that she chaired from 1988 through 2003. Her degrees include a Ph.D. in molecular biology and an M.P.H. in public health nutrition, both from the...

, among others.

Awards

2006 - Book of the Year, James Beard Foundation

James Beard Foundation

The James Beard Foundation is a New York-based national professional non-profit organization named in honor of James Beard that serves to promote the culinary arts by honoring chefs, wine professionals, journalists, and cookbook authors at annual award ceremonies and providing scholarships and...

 (Hungry Planet)

2006 - Best Writings on Food, James Beard Foundation (Hungry Planet)

2006 - Book of the Year, Harry Chapin

Harry Chapin

Harry Forster Chapin was an American singer-songwriter best known in particular for his folk rock songs including "Taxi", "W*O*L*D", and the number-one hit "Cat's in the Cradle". Chapin was also a dedicated humanitarian who fought to end world hunger; he was a key player in the creation of the...

 World Hunger Media Foundation (Hungry Planet)

2005 - Award of Excellence, Picture of the Year Foundation (Hungry Planet)

2004 - Picture of the Year, National Press Photographers Association

National Press Photographers Association

NPPA is the acronym for the National Press Photographers Association, founded in 1947. The organization is based in Durham, North Carolina and its mostly made up of still photographers, television videographers, editors, and students in the journalism field...

2000 - First Place, Science Photography, World Press Photo

World Press Photo

World Press Photo is an independent, non-profit organization based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Founded in 1955 the organization is known for holding the world's largest and most prestigious annual press photography contest....

Foundation (Robo Sapiens)

1999 - Best Writings on Food, James Beard Foundation (Man Eating Bugs)

1998 - Audie Award for Abridged Nonfiction, Audio Publishing Association (Women in the Material World)

1991 - Arts Magazine

1991 - World Press Photo Foundation

1985 - Picture of the Year, National Press Photographers Association

External links

• Peter Menzel Photography