Steve McCurry

Steve McCurry
McCurry on "Celebrating Multiculturalism Through Photography", Central Market Annex gallery, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Born	April 23, 1950 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Occupation	[Photographer]
Agent	Magnum Photos
Notable credit(s)	Leica Hall of Fame Award, Hasselblad Master Robert Capa Gold Medal for Best Photographic Reporting from Abroad
Website	www.stevemccurry.com

Steve McCurry (born April 23, 1950) is an American photographer best known for his 1984 photograph "Afghan Girl" which originally appeared in National Geographic magazine. He is a member of Magnum Photos.

Early life

McCurry attended Penn State University. He originally planned to study cinematography and filmmaking, but ended up getting a degree in theater arts and graduating in 1974. He became interested in photography when he started taking pictures for the Penn State newspaper The Daily Collegian.

After working at Today's Post in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania for two years, he left for India to freelance.

Career

His career was launched when, disguised in native garb, he crossed the Pakistan border into rebel-controlled areas of Afghanistan just before the Soviet invasion. When he emerged, he had rolls of film sewn into his clothes. Those images, which were published around the world, were among the first to show the conflict. His coverage won the Robert Capa Gold Medal for Best Photographic Reporting from Abroad, an award dedicated to photographers exhibiting exceptional courage and enterprise.

McCurry continued to cover armed conflicts, including the Iran-Iraq War, Lebanon Civil War, the Cambodian Civil War, the Islamic insurgency in the Philippines, the Gulf War and the Afghan Civil War. His work has been featured worldwide in magazines and he is a frequent contributor to National Geographic. He has been a member of Magnum Photos since 1986.

He is the recipient of numerous awards, including Magazine Photographer of the Year, awarded by the National Press Photographers Association. The same year, he won an unprecedented four first-place prizes in the World Press Photo contest. In 2014, McCurry was awarded The Royal Photographic Society's Centenary Medal.

McCurry focuses on the human consequences of war, not only showing what war impresses on the landscape, but rather, on the human face. “Most of my images are grounded in people. I look for the unguarded moment, the essential soul peeking out, experience etched on a person’s face. I try to convey what it is like to be that person, a person caught in a broader landscape, that you could call the human condition.”

McCurry is portrayed in a TV documentary The Face of the Human Condition (2003) by French award-winning filmmaker Denis Delestrac.

In May 2013 McCurry was Pirelli's choice of photographer to shoot the pictures for the 2013 Pirelli Calendar in Rio de Janeiro.

In 2016 McCurry was accused of manipulating his images with Photoshop and by other means.

"Afghan Girl"

Main article: Afghan Girl

McCurry took his most recognized portrait, "Afghan Girl", in a refugee camp near Peshawar, Pakistan. The image itself was named as "the most recognized photograph" in the history of the National Geographic magazine and her face became famous as the cover photograph on the June 1985 issue. The photo has also been widely used on Amnesty International brochures, posters, and calendars. The identity of the "Afghan Girl" remained unknown for over 17 years until McCurry and a National Geographic team located the woman, Sharbat Gula, in 2002. McCurry said, “Her skin is weathered; there are wrinkles now, but she is as striking as she was all those years ago.”

Kodachrome

Although McCurry shoots both in digital and film, his admitted preference is for transparency film. Eastman Kodak let him shoot the last ever produced roll of Kodachrome transparency film, which was processed in July 2010 by Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas and will be housed at the George Eastman House. Most of the photos, excluding a few near-duplicates, have been published on the Internet by Vanity Fair. "I shot it for 30 years and I have several hundred thousand pictures on Kodachrome in my archive. I'm trying to shoot 36 pictures that act as some kind of wrap up – to mark the passing of Kodachrome. It was a wonderful film."

Awards

2014	Photography Appreciation Award	Hamdan International Photography Award
2011	Leica Hall of Fame Award	St. Moritz, Switzerland
2011	Prix LiberPress	Girona, Spain
2009	Ambrogino D’Oro	Milan, Italy
2006	Lowell Thomas GOLD
2006	First Place, Buddha Rising, National Geographic, Dec. 2005	National Press Photographers Association
2006	Honorary Fellowship	New Zealand Institute of Professional Photography (NZIPP)
2005	Honorary Fellowship	The Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, London
2005	Photojournalism Division-International Understanding through Photography Award	Photographic Society of America
2003	The Lucie Award for Photojournalism	International Photography Awards
2003	Distinguished Alumni Award	Pennsylvania State University
2003	Co-recipient of the New York Film Festival Gold for documentary, Afghan Girl: Found"	New York Film Festival
2002	Distinguished Visiting Fellow	College of Creative Studies, University of California
2002	Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa	Fairleigh Dickinson University, NJ
2002	Photographer of the Year - PMDA Professional Photographer Award	PMDA
2002	Photographer of the Year	American Photo Magazine
2002	Special Recognition Award	United Nations International Photographic Council
2002	Award of Excellence for "Women of Afghanistan"	French Art Directors Association
2001	Award of Excellence, Book Series: "South SouthEast	Photography Annual, Communication Arts
2000	Book of the Year: "South SouthEast" Magazine Feature Picture Award of Excellence: "Women in Field, Yemen	Pictures of the Year International, Picture of the Year Competition
1999	Lifetime Fellow Award	Pennsylvania State University, PA
1998	Our World Photo Winner, "Red Boy" Our World Essay Finalist, India	Life Magazine: 'The Eisenstaedt Awards'
1998	Award of Excellence, Portraits: Red Boy	Picture of the Year Competition
1998	Southern Asian Journalistic Award: Outstanding Special Project: National Geographic Story, India: 50 Years of Independence Southern Asian Journalistic Award: Outstanding Photograph: Red Boy
1997	Magazine Feature Picture Award of Excellence: Fishermen	Picture of the Year Competition
1996	Magazine Feature Picture Story Award: '"Beggar Magazine Feature Picture Story Award: Burma: The Richest of the Poor Countries	Picture of the Year Competition
1994	Arts and Architecture Distinguished Alumni Award	Pennsylvania State University
1993	Award of Excellence for Rubble of War	National Press Photographers Association
1992	Oliver Rebbot Memorial Award: Best Photographic Reporting from Abroad on Gulf War Coverage	Overseas Press Club
1992	Magazine Feature Picture Award of Excellence: Fiery Aliens First Place, Magazine Science Award: Camels under a Blackened Sky First Place, Gulf War News Story: Kuwait: After the Storm	Picture of the Year Competition
1992	First Place, Nature and Environment: Oil-Stricken Bird, Kuwait First Place, General News Stories: Kuwait after the Storm Children's Award: "Camels under a Blackened Sky	World Press Photo Competition
1990	Award of Excellence, "Spanish Gypsy	White House News Photographers Association
1987	Medal of Honor for coverage of the 1986 Philippine Revolution	Philippines
1986	Oliver Rebbot Memorial Award: Best Photographic Reporting from Abroad for work done in the Philippines	Overseas Press Club
1984	Nature Category, First Place Nature Series Category, First place Daily LIfe Category, First Place Daily Life Series, First Place	World Press Competition
1985	Oliver Rebbot Award Citation: Monsoons and The New Faces of Baghdad
1984	Magazine Photographer of the Year	National Press Photographers Association
1980	Robert Capa Gold Medal for coverage of the war in Afghanistan for Time Magazine

Publications

• The Imperial Way. Text by Paul Theroux.
  • Boston, MA: Houghton-Mifflin, 1985. ISBN 978-0395393901.
  • UK: Hamish Hamilton, 1985. ISBN 978-0241116685.
• Monsoon. London: Thames and Hudson, 1988; 1995. ISBN 978-0500278505.
• Portraits. London: Phaidon, 1999; 2012. ISBN 978-0714838397.
• South Southeast. London: Phaidon, 2000. ISBN 978-0714839387.
• Sanctuary: The Temples of Angkor. London: Phaidon, 2002. ISBN 978-0714845593.
• The Path to Buddha: A Tibetan Pilgrimage. London: Phaidon, 2003; 2012. ISBN 978-0714863146.
• Steve McCurry. Phaidon 55 series. London: Phaidon, 2005. ISBN 978-0714862590.
• Looking East. London: Phaidon, 2006. ISBN 978-0714846378.
• In the Shadow of Mountains. London: Phaidon, 2007. ISBN 978-0714846408.
• The Unguarded Moment. London: Phaidon, 2009. ISBN 978-0714846644.
• The Iconic Photographs. London: Phaidon, 2011. ISBN 978-0714865133.
• Untold: The Stories Behind the Photographs. London: Phaidon, 2013. ISBN 978-0714864624.
• From These Hands: A Journey Along the Coffee Trail. London: Phaidon, 2015. ISBN 978-0714868981.
• India. London: Phaidon, 2015. ISBN 978-0714869964.

Exhibitions

• Steve McCurry: India, Rubin Museum of Art, New York, November 2015 – April 2016

External links

• Official website
• One on One With the Masters of Photography- Interview with McCurry which discuss the techniques of his Portrait Photography (2013).
• Steve McCurry's gallery at photographic agency "Sudest57" web site
• 2013 Pirelli Calendar shot by Steve McCurry
• Capturing the Face of Asia - Interview with McCurry in June 2007 by European Culture and Arts online Magazine "Culturekiosque"
• I Visualize Photo Possibilities Wherever I Am - Interview with McCurry in August 2009 by Indian photography web site "Fotoflock.com"
• One on One with Riz Khan on YouTube - Al Jezeera interview by Riz Khan on his work
• Interview on GUP Magazine ("It's All Mixed: An Interview with Steve McCurry", GUP Magazine, November 13, 2013)