The life story of one of the most recognizable photojournalists of our time.
-Which of your photographs best describes your life?
- Life is so complex, it is difficult to describe it in one sentence or in one idea... Maybe a picture where a child runs along an alley between two walls with prints of children's hands. He could probably represent me.
Broken arm
In 1950, a boy named Steve is born in a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the age of five, he, curious and lively, like all boys of his age, falls down the stairs and breaks his right arm. The bone heals poorly, and Steve, who is right-handed, has to learn to use his left.
This incident does not change his character at all - he is still interested in everything. Having matured, he chooses the most interesting profession - film director. At the age of 19, he went to Europe for a year, traveling around Sweden, Holland, and Israel. There, to save money and get to know the country from the inside, he lives with host families. In one of them, Steve meets and makes friends with a photographer.
They walk the streets of Stockholm, take photographs, and in the evenings they develop the pictures in a dark room. Then the young man realizes for the first time that photography is a wonderful way to combine his love of travel and an insatiable interest in life. A hand broken in childhood makes itself felt - it is uncomfortable for him to work with his left hand with cameras designed for right-handed people, but this worries him least of all.
As a result, while studying at the University of Pennsylvania, he, in parallel with directing, actively studied photography. He especially likes the work of Dorothea Lange and Walker Evans. Having received his diploma with honors, Steve does not work a day in his profession, but gets a job as a photojournalist at a newspaper. But he took his first good photograph two years earlier, during his student years.
"The Picture That Made Me"
In 1972 he travels to Mexico. While wandering down the street in Mexico City, Steve sees a homeless man slumped against the wall, directly under the window of a furniture store. The young photographer's gaze could not help but be drawn to this sad picture - a man in torn clothes lying on the bare slabs of the sidewalk exactly under a beautiful new sofa displayed in the window. It was this photograph that would set Steve on the path to professional photography.
Working for a newspaper quickly gets boring for a young man. Day after day he films the same thing: school graduations, club meetings... He decides that he doesn’t want to spend his whole life like this, saves money, quits - and leaves for India. No guarantees or expectations for photo orders from print media. Steve plans to spend six weeks there, but then he finds his true love - all of South Asia. Six weeks stretches over two years. He returns back to America for only a month and immediately leaves again - for Afghanistan.
The Real McCurry
Here in South Asia he will become the Steve McCurry we know. In 1979, in Chitral, right on the border with Afghanistan, he meets several refugees from a neighboring country. They tell the man with the camera that there is a civil war in Afghanistan - people are being killed there, villages are being wiped off the face of the earth. They ask him to go and film what is happening so that the world will know what is really happening.
Steve agrees, even though he has never been in a combat zone before. He thinks it's interesting, that it's an adventure. He is dressed in local clothes and illegally transferred across the border. They shoot at him, he is scared, but he is already one of these people, this is now his story too.
He forwards the photographs to a friend, who offers them to the New York Times and the Christian Science Monitor. In December of the same year, the USSR sent troops to Afghanistan. McCurry films this too. His photographs are published by Time and Newsweek magazines and the Associated Press. An unknown photographer who made small orders for regional newspapers appears on the front pages of international publications.
Soon National Geographic contacts him. For six months, Steve McCurry has been working on a story for NatGeo, which lands him and his guide in a Pakistani prison. They are shackled and not fed for several days. Then, without explanation, they are released without being deported from the country. McCurry continues to work, but National Geographic refuses to take the story - the editors do not like the text.
It is a big blow for a photographer to realize that he has failed the assignment of such a publishing house. But everything ends well - NatGeo takes another story from Steve and gives a new order. The collaboration continues to this day. It was on the cover of this magazine in June 1985 that McCurry’s most famous photo, “Afghan Girl,” appeared.
In 1986, Steve became a member of the international photo agency Magnum.
"Afghan Girl"
1984, the war in Afghanistan is still far from over. Steve McCurry and a colleague are filming life in a refugee camp in Pakistan when laughter is heard from one of the tents. Photographers look inside - there is a lesson in a makeshift school for girls. Steve asks permission to take some photos. One of the girls, who particularly interested McCurry, covers herself with an old hijab: it is not the custom of these people to allow a strange man, especially a foreigner, to see a woman’s face.
The teacher asks the girl to remove her hands and look directly at the camera. The girl allows us to take a few pictures, but then, completely embarrassed, leaves the tent. But McCurry already knows that photographs taken hastily without a flash will be good - there was so much soul in those precocious adult eyes.
The portrait of an Afghan girl will become one of the most famous shots in history. It will be reprinted millions of times. But no one will know either the name or the fate of this refugee - until in 2002, McCurry, together with the NatGeo group, finds her again with great difficulty. After 18 years, Sharbat Gula’s face will again appear on the cover of the magazine.
In 2004, Steve will create a non-profit organization, Imagine Asia, to spread secondary and higher education among the people of Afghanistan - ordinary people like Sharbat and her children.
Last film
At the beginning of Steve's career, cameras were only film. It was impossible to predict the quality of the image in advance, before developing the frame. How the photographs of Sharbat Gula turned out, McCurry will find out only a couple of months after the shooting. But digital cameras are gradually completely replacing film cameras. In 2009, Kodak decided to stop producing its most popular film, Kodachrome.
In recognition of the merits of Steve McCurry, who shot most of his shots with it, the company's management decides to give the latest film produced to the photographer. “I shot with it for 30 years. My archive contains several hundred thousand photographs. And these 36 frames were supposed to sum it up, to embody them all - to say goodbye to Kodachrome with dignity. It was a beautiful film,” he recalls.
After snapping the last roll, Steve never shot with a film camera again. These photographs were developed on July 14, 2010, and the slides were deposited in perpetuity at the George Eastman Museum in Rochester, New York.
Below you can see all the footage from the latest film.
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Actor Robert De Niro in his screening room in Tribeca, in New York City, May 2010.
De Niro in his screening room, May 2010. (Frame 4, not shown, is a near duplicate.)
De Niro in his office in Tribeca, May 2010.
Indian film actor, director, and producer Aamir Khan in India, June 2010.
A boy in a tea shop in Dharavi, the largest slum in Asia, near Mumbai, India, June 2010.
A sculpture studio in Mumbai that produces statues of notable Indian personages and Hindu gods, June 2010.
Indian film actress and director Nandita Das, in India, June 2010.
Shekhar Kapur, director of Elizabeth, in India, June 2010.
Amitabh Bachchan, one of the country’s most prominent actors, in India, June 2010.
A Rabari tribal elder, photographed in India, June 2010.
A Rabari tribal elder, who is also an itinerant magician, photographed in India, June 2010.
A Rabari tribal elder and itinerant magician, photographed in India, June 2010.
A Rabari woman, photographed in India, June 2010.
A Rabari girl, photographed in India, June 2010.
An elderly Rabari woman, photographed in India, June 2010.
A Rabari boy, photographed in India, June 2010.
Turkish photographer Ara Guler (“The Eye of Istanbul”), in Istanbul, Turkey, June 2010.
Street art at Seventh Avenue and Bleecker Street, in New York City, July 2010.
A woman reading on a Saturday afternoon in Washington Square Park, in New York City, July 2010.
A street performer in Washington Square Park, July 2010.
Magnum photographer Elliott Erwitt in his Central Park West studio, in New York City, July 2010.
A young couple in Union Square, in New York City, July 2010.
A self-portrait of Steve McCurry, taken in Manhattan, July 2010.
A man on a bench in front of a statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Union Square, July 2010.
McCurry at four a.m. in his hotel room watching a Stephen Colbert interview on television, in Parsons, Kansas, July 2010.
A local man sleeps outside a community center in Parsons, July 2010.
A statue in a cemetery in Parsons, home to the last photographic lab in the world that developed Kodachrome film, July 2010.
Twice Dead
One day, explaining why he is willing to risk his life in hot spots and go to the most dangerous places in the world, McCurry will say: “I think we want to witness history, see events that have not yet been recorded. We want to be where history is written, because in the end we live simple, boring lives...”
But no one, but this photographer, can complain about boredom. He is imprisoned several times in Pakistan, robbed and almost killed in Thailand, and once nearly drowned in India. After a severe concussion, he loses his memory for a while and barely emerges from the plane that crashed into a winter lake in Slovenia. Survives after a bomb falls tens of meters from his hotel in Afghanistan.
Twice during his time in Afghanistan, his family was informed that Steve was “missing in action, presumed dead.” And a few times he actually thinks it's over. But each time he continues to move forward, towards danger, even when tragedy comes to his own doors.
9/11
September 10, 2001 Steve McCurry returns from a long assignment in China. The next day, he and his assistant are sorting mail in his apartment near Washington Square Park, and then the phone rings: “Fire in the World Trade Center.” McCurry looks out the window and sees the twin towers burning.
“I grabbed my camera bag, went up to the roof of the house and started taking pictures. We didn’t even know then that they were planes, because we didn’t have a radio or TV on the roof. We thought it was a fire, a terrible tragedy, but it would soon be put out. And then they collapsed.
I could not believe it. I saw them explode, I saw the smoke, but it was impossible - that they were no longer there. My assistant and I ran downstairs to photograph everything in place. It was so surreal. There was fine, fine white dust and office papers everywhere, but no more office equipment: no cabinets, no phones, no computers. Everything seemed to evaporate. There was only dust, steel and paper.
We were there until 9 pm. I went home, but could not sleep, got up at half past four in the morning and went there again. There were police, firefighters, soldiers, but I needed to document everything. I cut a hole in the fence and spent the entire morning of September 12 at the site where the towers stood until the police caught me. But it definitely needed to be documented - and I did it.”
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"My home is Asia"
Now it is almost impossible to find McCurry at home. When he is not teaching seminars for photographers, he travels around the world, often visiting Asia. “Asia is home for me. I love this part of the world. There is such deep culture, geography, such diversity. Their culture goes back thousands of years. The architecture, the language, the clothes - everything is so special.”
But what amazes him much more is how similar people are. They dress in different clothes, build different houses, eat different food. But everyone laughs or is sad the same way. Deep down, we all belong to humanity.
Now Stephen McCurry is 65 years old, but he doesn’t think about stopping. Because there are still so many places to visit: Madagascar, Iran, Russia, return to Tibet. Because “you only live once, and the opportunity to see the world, all its beauty, and secrets, and chaos is a worthy aspiration.” Because a good day is “any day when I see something new, explore the world. And if you can take a good photo, so much the better.”
Anyone interested in the world of photography is familiar with the poignant image of a girl from Afghanistan with amazing light eyes that look straight at the viewer. The portrait of twelve-year-old Sharbat Gula, featured on the cover of National Geographic, was taken by American Steve McCurry and became the most recognizable photograph ever to appear in NG. The symbol of the suffering that befell refugees and residents of the country affected by armed conflicts forever glorified its creator.
Despite the unambiguous fame and recognition of the portrait, Steve McCurry did not become the “author of one photo.” This is a famous, successful and extraordinarily talented photojournalist who has done (and continues to do) a lot for reportage and documentary photography. His works are published in Life, Paris-Match, Time, Newsweek and other respected publications; Robert De Niro and other celebrities happily pose for him.
Photographer Steve McCurry for Valentino
Steve McCurry does not rest on his laurels, he still travels a lot and has no plans to settle down at home, preferring Asia to America with its centuries-old history and multiculturalism.
Thirty years of adventure and work in the hottest spots
McCurry is a strong-willed man. He began his career as the Afghan conflict flared up and took some of its first photographs. To obtain this photographic evidence, he had to sew the film into the folds of his clothing - McCurry crossed the border in local "garb", he even specially grew a beard so as not to arouse suspicion among the rebels controlling the territory. Having seen the photographs taken during the expedition, Time magazine offered him permanent cooperation, but Steve stayed in place for less than a year, moved to National Geographic and again set off on difficult and dangerous journeys.
McCurry was robbed on the streets of Thailand and drowned during a trip to India. He was in a plane crash in Slovenia, miraculously swimming out of an icy lake, and survived when a bomb fell meters from his Afghan hotel. The photographer visited a Pakistani prison, where he ended up while carrying out a NatGeo assignment, survived many days of hunger and shackles, but after his release he continued to work. Twice his family was informed that he was missing - but the bad news was premature.
McCurry is the author of photographs from numerous hot spots, he photographed wars in Lebanon, the Philippines, the Persian Gulf, and Cambodia. He was awarded a gold medal, recognized as the best foreign photojournalist and has long been accepted into the ranks of the Magnum agency.
Dangerous situations seem to follow him - even in his native America, he managed to get into the epicenter of the events of September 11, 2001. Steve filmed the burning WTC towers from the window of his apartment, and the next day he made a hole in the fence at the disaster site and filmed in the rubble until the police arrested him.
In addition to his main job - filming in dangerous locations - McCurry is actively involved in public projects. In 2004, the photographer created the Imagine Asia organization - a non-profit structure that helps the people of Afghanistan (including the children of that same grown-up girl) get an education.
He enjoys sharing his professional knowledge, speaking to audiences around the world. Steve collaborates with colleagues and amateur photographers - for example, he did an unusual project with Russian publisher and blogger Nika Belotserkovskaya, conducting a master class for her photography courses in Sicily.
A special style: color, clarity and a mixture of realistic and artistic photography
McCurry, according to the unanimous belief of his colleagues and fans, is better than anyone else at blurring the difference between hard reporting and artistic photography. He combines compositional harmony with expressive realism, telling stories through the camera that do not need explanation, are holistic and clear to viewers, regardless of nationality and social group.
McCurry is a great observer, a leading master of the street genre. His reportage photographs look easy, they have a casual grace and a sense of capturing the moment. One of the main tools of a photographer is color. He brings additional meaning to the work, this is McCurry's calling card.
McCurry's photographs are always recognizable, no matter what equipment he shoots with. The famous photo of a girl from Afghanistan, like most other works, was taken on Nikon with a Nikkor lens (and without additional light) on Kodachrome color film. The photographer took so many photographs with it over the course of 30 years that, as a token of gratitude, the Kodak company gave Steve the last Kodachrome reel produced. After shooting these 36 frames, McCurry switched to a digital camera and never worked with film again.
Rich biography and open ending
Steve McCurry became interested in photography in his youth, starting his career taking pictures for the university newspaper. The photographer was born in Philadelphia in 1950. At the age of five, he unsuccessfully broke his right hand and was forced to master the use of his left. Having decided to become a director, Steve studied cinematography, but switched to the theater department, which he graduated in 1974. Before he turned 20, he went on a trip to Mexico, the Middle East and Europe. In Sweden, he met a professional photographer who taught him the basics of the craft.
After graduating from university, McCurry got a job as a newspaper photographer, but he quickly grew tired of the routine. He quit and went to India - without money, hopes for orders and prospects, living from hand to mouth and spending money mainly on film. Planning to spend a month and a half in Asia, he ended up staying there for two years. Returning to America for just a month, he left again - this time to areas adjacent to the conflict zone in Afghanistan.
On the Afghan border, Steve met refugees who told him about the civil war. They changed him into clothes that were not conspicuous, and he went to take pictures, although he had never been to military conflict zones before. He sent the photographs he took home, and they ended up in the New York Times. At the end of the same year, Steve photographed the period of the entry of Soviet forces into Afghanistan. The work was published on the front pages of Time and Newsweek, and the young reporter became a photojournalism star.
The photographer spent several years in the conflict zone. His most famous photograph, the “Afghan Mona Lisa,” was taken precisely then, in a Pakistani refugee camp. McCurry photographed the confused and unhappy girl, who had lost many family members in a helicopter attack, in a makeshift field school. In a few minutes, the photographer took historical shots, which NG at first did not want to use - they seemed too dramatic. As a result, the photo ended up on the cover, and Steve himself became part of the history of photography.
The photographer still works closely with National Geographic, travels to Tibet, Madagascar, Iran, travels around Russia and has no plans to slow down the pace of life and work.
At almost 70 years old, he organizes international exhibitions, conducts seminars and never tires of repeating that people all over the world are the same, although they look so different. You can trust Steve McCurry - few have seen as much as he has and few have been endowed with such generous, bright and extraordinary talent.
Steve McCurry signs an autograph on a photograph of the Kremlin he took from the roof of GUM.About different destinies. There is poverty in the modern world, this is a fact. But I am also sure that people live with different understandings of what wealth and poverty are. Life has put many in difficult conditions, but thanks to this, they have developed interesting human stories that they want to tell. The topic of poverty should not be exploited. But we also cannot pretend that it does not exist.
About an Afghan girl. My feelings for this image and for the story I shot back in 1984 are as fresh as ever. Nothing changed! I couldn’t let go of the thought of how the girl’s fate turned out. And a few years later, my colleagues and I found her and helped as much as we could. Now she continues to live her usual life in Afghanistan. We still keep in touch.
About female beauty. I don’t think that ideas about female beauty have changed significantly in the new millennium. This is an eternal story. Of course, if we are talking about natural beauty. A hundred years ago there were completely different ideals! But during the time that I have been living in the world (and I have been living for 66 years), the perception of a woman’s beauty has remained the same. Perhaps only the hairstyles change.
About the time. But the sense of time in the modern world has changed a lot. Previously, it went at a completely different rhythm. Like a peasant with a hoe. The sun is already overhead, which means it's time for lunch. Today we have become time catchers. We try to use every minute. If business people make an appointment for 12 o'clock, they know for sure that it will start at exactly 12. The expression “time is money” works more than ever. I would even say that now time is very big money. And yet, the sense of time in different countries is very different. I've encountered this many times. In my opinion, in the countries of Southern Europe and Latin America, time does not flow as strictly as in other places on Earth.
About the watch. Their job is to show the time. But here is a story similar to what I told you above: how different watches can be thanks to people’s imagination. Human nature is designed in such a way that we are not ready to stop there, we are eager to improve everything. And not only technically, but also visually. Just for fun. We have a desire to create something special that can delight others. And this is how masterpieces of architecture are born. Likewise, a watch becomes a work of art. I saw a watch that a client ordered from Atelier Cabinotiers Vacheron Constantin. This is an amazingly complex and stunningly beautiful thing that took eight years to create.
About the new world. At the age of 19, I decided to devote my life to travel and therefore became a photographer. He began traveling around Africa, Latin America, Europe and Asia. I have been traveling constantly for over 40 years. I am attracted to another world, new and unfamiliar. Foreign places interested me more than the faces I saw at home. But I also filmed something in the USA (by the way, I’m originally from Philadelphia), mainly for my own pleasure. Thanks to the Vacheron Constantin project (the watch house, in collaboration with Steve McCurry, chose 12 little-known and inaccessible corners of the world to photograph - MC's note), I found myself where I had long dreamed of visiting. Together we wanted to show amazing monuments of human culture. The watch manufactory in Geneva, the aqueduct in Mexico, the Chand Baori step well in India... On the one hand, simple and functional structures. But how amazing people made them!
Steve McCurry(English) Steve McCurry, R. 1950) - contemporary American photographer, photojournalist, editor. His photograph became widely known "Afghan Girl".
Biography, creativity
Steve McCurry born February 24, 1950 in Philadelphia, USA. He graduated magna cum laude from Pennsylvania State University in 1974 with a degree in theater arts. McCurry took his first photographs for the university newspaper, The Daily Collegian.
After graduating from university, Steve McCurry spent some time taking photographs for the small newspaper Today's Post in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, after which he left for India, where he worked as a freelance photographer.
Shortly before the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan, Steve McCurry, together with journalist Debra Denker, dressed in inconspicuous clothes, illegally crossed the border into Pakistan in a zone that was at that time controlled by the rebels. Later, when he left the war zone, he had to sew the footage into his clothes. Subsequently, his photographs were published in magazines such as The New York Times, TIME and Paris Match. In addition, for his work, the photographer was awarded the Robert Capa Gold Medal (award in the field of photojournalism) for the best photo report from abroad.
In subsequent years, McCurry continued to cover armed conflicts. Among others, he worked during the Iran-Iraq War, the Lebanese Civil War, the Cambodian Islamic Insurgency Civil War in the Philippines, the Gulf War, and the Afghan Civil War. His photographs were often published in National Geographic magazine. Steve McCurry has been a member of Magnum Photos since 1986.
In 2001, Steve McCurry's work was exhibited at the Leo Burnett International Art Exhibition with Italian artist Umberto Pettinicchio in Lausanne, Switzerland. In 2003, the documentary film "The Face of the Human Condition" was released, directed by Denis Delistrak about the life and work of McCurry.
In 2005, Steve McCurry stopped using film. He explained his decision by saying that digital media is much more convenient in the field and, more importantly, photographs can always be sent outside the “danger zone.” In an interview with The Guardian, the photographer said: "Old habits may be hard to break, but my experience is that most of my colleagues, regardless of their age, have switched to digital... The quality has never been better. Plus, now I can , for example, working in extremely low light conditions." However, in June 2010, McCurry took part in a Kodak promotion: the photographer was asked to use the latest Kodachrome film, the production of which had already been suspended at that time. The photographs taken as part of this project were posted publicly on the Internet by Vanity Fair magazine.
In May 2013, McCurry worked on photographs for the Pirelli 2013 Rio de Janeiro calendar.
In 2016, Steve McCurry found himself at the center of a scandal related to the fact that some of his photographs were edited in various editors (for example, the photograph "Afghan Girl" was cropped for use on the cover). McCurry himself, however, reacted quite calmly to the accusations, saying that he does not consider himself a photojournalist, but rather a visual storyteller, who, however, does not lie to his audience, because the changes made do not affect the veracity of the image. The scandal once again raised a number of theoretical questions related to the impossibility of depicting truth in photography.
"Afghan Girl"
Steve McCurry took his most famous photograph in December 1984. The photo, which became known as the Afghan Girl, was taken in a Pashtun refugee camp near Peshawar, Pakistan. In June 1985, she appeared on the cover of National Geographic magazine and was later voted "the most famous photograph" in the magazine's history by USA Today. A number of publications (including National Geographic itself and American Photo) call this photograph the “Afghan Mona Lisa.”
Steve McCurry tried several times to find the girl he photographed, but only succeeded in January 2002. As it turned out, her name Sharbat Gula and in 1984 she was about 13 years old (Gula herself does not know exactly her age). She ended up in a refugee camp after her parents were killed in a Soviet helicopter attack on their village.
The photo was taken on Kodachrome color film using a Nikon FM2 camera with a Nikkor 2.5/105 lens (105 mm focal length) without additional lighting. It is curious that when taking this photograph, McCurry considered himself particularly lucky that he was able to capture the face of an Afghan woman, which is usually covered by a burqa. Sharbat Gula herself did not know about her fame until 2002 and saw the photograph only in 2003.
Last spring there was a large-scale exhibition of Steve McCurry - recognized genius of photography. A scandal broke out, after which the throne of the greatest master of our time was shaken: he was accused of abusing retouching, forgetting to “clean up” traces. Steve McCurry, who captures moments of joy and sorrow, in each of whose works reveals the inner world of a person, called the changes in his own photographs a misunderstanding. He stated that he had never used Photoshop, and the processing was done by his assistant, with whom the famous photographer no longer collaborates.
After the exhibition “The Worlds of Steve McCurry” the audience was divided into two camps. Some condemned the author for computer processing, criticizing him for sacrificing authenticity at the altar of beauty. Others favorably received such games with reality and did not consider the retouching to be a disadvantage. In our article we will talk about a person who is often compared to a painter who tells not just about one episode from a person’s life, but about a whole story.
Passion for photography
Contemporary American photojournalist Steve McCurry was born in 1950 in Philadelphia. After graduating from school, he entered the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied cinematography. The young man is interested in photography, and publishes his first works in the student newspaper. In 1974, the young man got a job as a correspondent for a local publication, and followed a thorny path to the heights of his craft. He acquires professional skills by reading books and getting acquainted with the work of famous masters working with black and white film. However, the young man prefers to take color photographs and at the same time he knows for sure that bright colors should not distract the viewer.
Thirst for new experiences
For four years, Steve McCurry, whose biography arouses interest among loyal fans, has been honing his skills in the editorial office. After a while, a young and ambitious man realizes that he wants to travel to get to know the world. He craves unforgettable experiences, dreams of thrills, and is drawn to the unknown.
The photographer saves money from every salary to go to India, and when Steve's dream came true, he felt like the happiest person. As the master admits, from that trip his research into world cultures began, which continues to this day. He leaves behind a boring life in his native country, and the unknown does not scare him. An adventurer by nature, Steve does not want his life to be boring and measured. He realizes that only photography will bring long-awaited changes.
Photographs that made their author famous
At the end of the 70s, the beginning of his brilliant career was laid. When all Western journalists are banned from entering Afghanistan, risk-taker Steve McCurry crosses the border from Pakistan and becomes the only photographer to document the conflict. He spends two weeks in a combat zone, putting his life in mortal danger. One of the news agencies became interested in the footage, and the American’s works were published in all the leading magazines in the world.
Dangerous work
After this, the popular publications Time and National Geographic offer Steve a permanent job, and the photographer chooses the latter. He is often at the epicenter of various events, in hot spots, and the local population, prejudiced against foreigners, does not want to pose. He is considered an alien stranger pursuing his own goals.
American photographer Steve McCurry often looked death in the eye: he was beaten, tortured, and taken hostage. In a short article it is impossible to tell about all the tragic events that happened to the legendary master, who does not consider himself famous.
Erasing boundaries
The author of works in which individuality is visible, does not seek to create reportage photographs and declares that he incredibly loves life. He travels around the world and creates new projects that capture the brightest moments. His pictures, full of colors, cannot be confused with the works of other authors. A photographer who shows culture in the most authentic form gives the viewer an excellent opportunity to be transported to those distant and picturesque places where the creator himself visited.
The amazing skill of the legendary American is that everyone forgets about time and space, as Steve McCurry blurs the boundaries between people who are on opposite sides of the photographs. The genius, who accurately conveys the inner state of a person, treats his heroes with different cultural and religious traditions with great respect.
Pictures with history
In love with life, he does not photograph death, and all his works of art are filled with colorful flowers. These are real paintings that you need to look at to feel their history. “In my work, the soul looks out, and a person’s entire experience is engraved on his face. Pictures, free of language barriers, freeze unique moments in time,” Steve McCurry shares his feelings.
The photographs of the recognized legend are real, and in them, as in life, celebration coexists with sadness. The American encourages us to first be grateful for what each of us already has, and only then to desire something more. The author of the photographs, endowed with special energy, is convinced that the viewer who sees the grief of other people will awaken sympathy and change the perception of their problems.
Photo icon of modern times
The best photographer of our time, who has millions of unique shots in his arsenal, gains worldwide fame after publishing a photo that has become his calling card. In 1984, he ends up in an Afghan refugee camp, where he immediately draws attention to one girl who survived the horrors of war and lost her parents. He is attracted by the piercing eyes of a child who looks much older than his years. Unfortunately, at that moment, Steve McCurry doesn’t even think about finding out the name and date of birth of his model.
"Afghan Girl" is a photograph that is strikingly different from the rest. One of the most recognizable works attracts the viewer's attention primarily with the beauty of the young heroine, who looks directly into the camera lens. In the girl’s bewitching gaze one can read determination and embarrassment, hatred and dignity. The photograph appears on the cover of National Geographic and instantly becomes a symbol of the Afghan people’s struggle for their independence.
Meeting after 17 years
Curiously, the author spent a long time looking for a girl with green eyes, who brought him incredible popularity. Dreaming of seeing his muse again, Steve McCurry did not lose hope, but the search did not bring any results. And only in 2002, luck smiled on the photographer, and he finally met a woman in whom he recognized his heroine with a piercing gaze. Sharbat Gula, who did not even suspect such fame, remembers very well the day when an American photographed her. The woman, who got married and gave birth to children, agreed to a repeat photo shoot, wanting to improve her financial condition, and Steve promised to take an active part in the fate of her family.
An award-winning author who loves to look at people's faces, is in love with his work and dreams of continuing it as long as possible. Considering himself a visual storyteller, the photographer creates works that evoke strong emotions in the admiring viewer, and the scandal has once again drawn attention to the amazing works of the American genius.
