A new exhibit by Flagstaff adventure photographer Dawn Kish, Grand Archaeology: New Excavations along the Colorado River, will be featured during Archaeology Awareness Month, at the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff. The exhibit, which will run from March 22 through July 13, 2008, documents recent archaeological excavation and research in Grand Canyon National Park, conducted by MNA in partnership with GCNP. The exhibit is made possible through the generous support of the Grand Canyon Association.

“The Grand Canyon archaeological project between the Grand Canyon National Park and MNA is the first major archaeological project within Grand Canyon National Park in a generation and provides a unique opportunity to study sites along the Colorado River corridor. It is hoped that this project will provide new information about the lifeways of the people who lived in the Grand Canyon in the past,” said MNA Director Robert Breunig.

The exhibit’s featured excavation is part of a project focused on nine archaeological sites. The project began in 2005 and will continue through 2011, with excavations being led by MNA Archaeologist and Principal Investigator Ted Neff and Grand Canyon National Park River Corridor Archaeologist Lisa Leap. In the mid-1980s, Grand Canyon National Park archaeologists noted an increase of erosion at a number of sites along the Colorado River due to natural deterioration, visitor impact, and overall sediment depletion caused by the operation of Glen Canyon Dam. These excavation and research efforts will, therefore, collect valuable information about past life ways in Grand Canyon before it is lost forever.

About her experience on the canyon trip, exhibit photographer Dawn Kish says, “Working in the field is the best studio. The world is where I love to be, honored to be surrounded by the elements. Working along the river corridor of the Colorado River is a dream. It might be 125 degrees and the sand is embedding in my camera equipment, but it is all worth it.”

Kish adds, “I love being outside and usually my activities become my subject. Mother Nature is my main inspiration. My job as a photographer gives me opportunities to constantly embrace knowledge. Like an anthropologist, I go in deep to tell the stories.” The story of this exhibition is well documented, with descriptive images that give the audience an understanding of what archaeology is all about.

Kish received her first camera at the age of 17. Later on, she gained experience from being a photography assistant to Flagstaff photographers John Running and Sue Bennett. With her eye-catching talent developing, Kish started to shoot professionally by 23. Kish’s latest works are two articles featured in the March 2008 issue of National Geographic Adventure, “Arch Hunting” and “Knowledge from a Navajo Rancher.” Recent clients include Teva, Patagonia, and Amerprise. Kish also received the Red Bull Photo Extreme Award in January 2007 for best close-up photo. The combination of her passion for outdoor activities and her eye for composition of shapes and shadows results in her unique and interesting images.