AN EVENT BY SPIRIT NOW LONDON
Online event: 25 May 2021
Introduction written Marie-Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre (Founder & Director of Spirit Now London)
Published by Spirit Now London
Hello dear Friends,
After a series of live visits and zooms to artists' studios and museums worldwide
(Mexico, Taiwan, Venice...), today is our last webinar before the summer.
We are very honoured to travel to NY to meet with one of the iconic voices in
contemporary photography for more than 30 years: Steve McCurry.
You all have in mind the image of the Afghan Girl: such a powerful image, putting a
human face behind every conflict happening in the regions the artist travelled to,
from India to Pakistan.
Before he was a globetrotter, Steve McCurry was born in the suburb of Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania; he studied cinematography at the Pennsylvania State University
before working for a local newspaper. After several years of freelance work,
McCurry made his first of what would become many trips to India.
After several years of freelance work, Steeve, with little more than a bag of clothes
and another film, made his way across the subcontinent, exploring the country with
his camera.
It was after several months of travel that he found himself crossing the border into
Pakistan. He met a group of refugees from Afghanistan, who smuggled him across
the border into their country, just as the Russian Invasion was closing the land to all
western journalists. Emerging in traditional dress, with a full beard and
weather-worn features after weeks embedded with the Mujahedeen, McCurry
brought the world the first images of the conflict in Afghanistan, putting a human
face to the issue on every masthead.
Since then, McCurry has gone on to create stunning images on all seven continents
and countless countries. His work is internationally renowned and has been seen in
lots of magazine and book covers, over a dozen books, and numerous exhibitions
around the world to his name.
His images span conflicts, vanishing cultures, ancient traditions and contemporary
culture.
McCurry has been recognized with some of the most prestigious awards in the
industry, including the Robert Capa Gold Medal, National Press Photographers
Award, and an unprecedented four first prize awards from the World Press Photo
contest. The Minister of French Culture has also appointed McCurry a Knight of the
Order of Arts and Letters, and most recently, the Royal Photographic Society in
London awarded McCurry the Centenary Medal for Lifetime Achievement.
I would like to thanks Biba Giacchetti, who helped me organising this webinar for
Spirit Now London. She will say a few words before leaving the floor to Steeve.
Please ask questions in the icone reserved for the Chat, and I will read them to
Steeve at the end of the presentation.